Golf and the murky origins! in Articles
Every game has a sort of history backing it up and
golf in not any exception to this. This game is different from every other sport
by the way that it is played. There are some who call this game insane but
insane or not, I have always been curious as to the origin of this game. The
history of this game is as murky as the game itself as you will agree when you
read some of the alleged ‘facts’ that I have listed below.
The Dutch: It
is mentioned in the annals of history that the Dutch played a game similar to
golf somewhere in 1297. The game played then involved hitting a leather ball
with a stick at a target. The person who managed to hit the target more than
anybody else was declared the winner. This game could well have led to the
creation of golf as we know today.
The Chinese influence: This game is
also alleged to be Chinese in origin as there are written records from the
Dongxuan records, an 11th century book. This book makes a mention of the game of
the stick and the ball, but then again, this could also be taken to mean the
game of the cricket or that of the baseball. Although, there is a mention in
this book of a similar game, there are not many who believe that this is the
precursor to golf itself.
The Scots: This game is widely believed to be
Scottish in origin and even today, there is no other nation that has a major
chunk of its populace playing this game as the Scots do. The game of golf is
mentioned in two 15th century laws prohibiting this game in all of Scotland. So
the link between this game and Scotland is firmly established. Today, many a
literature lampoon the Scots as the crazy golf loving people and the world knows
them to be so.
The ancient grounds: Some of the golf courses that are
still played on are quite old but none come as close to being the oldest as the
Musselburgh Old Links Golf Course. This is the very ground where the royalty in
the form of Mary, Queen of the Scots, played a game of golf.
The funny
thing about this game is that although most of the grounds have 18 holes to
play, this was not always so. There were a few games where the number of holes
went up to 22, and some of the grounds like the St.Andrews ground, were played
on as the ground was. That is, the ground dictated the way that the game was
played, with some of the holes being played on first and the others
later.
As to whether the world believes the game to be Scottish or not,
the fact of the matter is that even reading about its history is bound to leave
one entertained. So naturally, the game itself would be quite entertaining to
play. With the golf courses being as tricky as they are, and some of them even
dictating the way that the game should be played, it is a challenge that we
should all welcome!
Golf is not an easy game. Ask those who play this game regularly and they will explain how different types of clubs and balls can drastically change the way you play golf. While there is no doubt about the fact that proper selection of a golf club is very important, the same also holds true as far as selecting a correct ball is concerned. Most professionals readily agree that the best way to cut down on handicaps is selecting the perfect ball. There are many means that can be employed to help yo ... Read More