History of Golf

The game of golf was developed in Scotland during the 15th century. Players would hit a pebble around a course of sand or rabbit tracks using a stick or a primitive version of the golf club. During the mid-15th century, when Scotland was trying to defend itself from an English invasion, many people focused on playing golf, and other sports, to keep themselves from being taken to the army. Because of this neglect to join in on the military training, James II of Scotland banned golf as a sport. The ban was eventually lifted, and the standard 18-hole golf course was developed in 1764; stroke play was later introduced in 1759.

During the early 19th century, the game of golf was first introduced in the United States. Players would use wooden or metal clubs and would hit the balls into cups along an 18-hole golf course. The players would begin each hole from the tee box; from here, they would hit along the fairway and eventually end up on the green. Once the player reached the green, he or she would then putt the ball into the cup. Aside from the difficulties of understanding the game of golf, golf players also faced a number of shot hindrances on each hole. These hindrances included ponds, sand traps, and high grass, which would make it harder for the golf player to play the hole. Each hole had a number of strokes designated, “where the number indicated the benchmark number of strokes allowed for that hole.”  A hole was a Par3, Par4, or Par5, with a Par3 being the easiest and a Par5 being the most difficult. For an 18-hole course, 72 was the typical total par, which was the sum of the par for each of the 18 holes. If a player was under 72, he or she was considered to be “under par”; if a player was above 72, he or she was considered to be “over par”. As time has passed, golf has proven to be an entertaining sport that is being played all over the world.