History of Golf – Looking Back at the Origin

The game of golf is considered to have been in the world of human beings for as long as six centuries. Yes, that’s correct; it is believed that it was played in its ‘bare bones’ version in as early as the 15th century. And where it originated is also a common knowledge; the Scots are held responsible for bringing the game into being. They dug a hole in the ground, used a stick (club) and a ball, and made getting it into that hole as the main objective of the game.

The history of golf is rather interesting. The earliest known information about golf is derived from King James II of Scotland who ruled the country in the 1450s. He banned golf, along with football (soccer) because he believed that both these games were proving to be considerable distractions for his archers; they were spending more time in playing rather than practicing.
Later, both James III, in the year 1471, and James IV, in the year 1491, following their predecessor, reissued the bans on these games.

However, the game continued to evolve and gain popularity over time. It was in the 18th century, 1744 to be precise, that the then known rules were written down and golf came into being officially. Any modern-day golf player will easily recognize those rules, as they form the basics of the game.

It would be a little unfair to give all the credit of ‘inventing’ golf to the Scots. Golf seemed to have evolved from the ball-and-stick games that were being played in the United Kingdom in the Middle Ages. However, evidence suggests that the similar ball-and-stick games were also played in Germany, France and a few other European countries at the same time. The evidence come straight from the name of the game itself; ‘golf’ comes from the Scots meaning “glove” or “goff”, which themselves come from the old Dutch term “kolf”.

In the middle ages, the Scots and the Dutch were close trade partners. The fact that the term ‘golf’ comes from an Old Dutch term, makes the game being adapted from the old but similar Dutch games a high possibility. However, the credit of evolving those games into golf certainly goes to the Scots.

Another interesting bit of knowledge was uncovered recently. If we go farther back in history, the ball-and-stick games that evolved to golf in Scotland were introduced there by the Romans. The confusion about who actually invented the game still is a matter of discussion. But, collectively, the whole of Europe gets the credit.

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