Modern golf developed in Scotland in the 1400s, when players struck balls across coastal links land toward targets. The game was popular enough that the Scottish Parliament under James II banned it in 1457 because it distracted from archery practice. Early golf societies wrote the first known rules in the 1740s, St Andrews reduced its course to 18 holes in 1764, setting the standard still used today, and The Open, first played in 1860, became the sport’s oldest championship. Golf spread across Britain and then worldwide, with governing bodies such as the R&A and USGA shaping its rules, and it returned to the Olympic Games in 2016.
Origins in Scotland
Games involving hitting a ball with a stick existed in many places, including stick-and-ball games in the Netherlands and elsewhere in Europe. However, the game that became modern golf, played over open ground toward a hole in as few strokes as possible, took shape on the sandy coastal land of eastern Scotland. These links, with their rolling dunes and firm turf, were unsuitable for farming but ideal for golf. By the 1400s, golf was popular enough to be mentioned in Scottish law, and the game continued to grow despite periodic bans.
Key milestones
| Year | Milestone |
|---|---|
| 1457 | Scottish Parliament under James II bans golf because it distracts from archery practice |
| 1744 | Gentlemen Golfers of Leith write one of the earliest known sets of rules |
| 1754 | Society of St Andrews Golfers founded, later the Royal and Ancient Golf Club |
| 1764 | St Andrews reduces its course from 22 to 18 holes, setting the standard |
| 1860 | First Open Championship played at Prestwick |
| 1894 | United States Golf Association (USGA) founded |
| 1916 | PGA of America formed |
| 1934 | First Masters Tournament, then called the Augusta National Invitation |
| 1950 | LPGA founded |
| 2016 | Golf returns to the Olympics after more than a century |
The first rules
In 1744, the Gentlemen Golfers of Leith, later the Honourable Company of Edinburgh Golfers, drew up a set of 13 rules for a competition, among the earliest written golf rules known. Ten years later, the Society of St Andrews Golfers was founded and adopted similar rules. Over the following century, St Andrews grew in influence, and in 1834 the society became the Royal and Ancient Golf Club of St Andrews. The R&A eventually became one of the game’s two main rule-making bodies, alongside the USGA, which was founded in 1894 to govern golf in the United States.
Why 18 holes
Early courses had varying numbers of holes. In 1764, the golfers at St Andrews combined several short holes, reducing their course from 22 holes to 18. Because St Andrews was so influential, other clubs gradually followed, and 18 holes became the standard round of golf. Nine-hole courses remain common, especially for casual play.
The Open and the birth of championships
The Open Championship was first played in 1860 at Prestwick Golf Club in Scotland, with a small field of professionals. Willie Park Sr won the first event. Amateurs were admitted the following year, making it truly open. The Open is the oldest of golf’s four men’s major championships, and its early decades were dominated by Scottish professionals such as Old Tom Morris and his son, Young Tom Morris.
The Morris family and early professionals
In the mid-1800s, golf professionals often worked as caddies, club makers, ball makers and greenkeepers as well as players. Old Tom Morris, born in St Andrews in 1821, won The Open four times and later served as keeper of the green at St Andrews, where he shaped the Old Course and designed or remodeled many other courses across Britain. His son, Young Tom Morris, won The Open four consecutive times from 1868 to 1872, with no championship held in 1871. Their era helped turn golf from a local pastime into a sport with recognized champions and a growing audience.
Course design and the links tradition
The earliest courses were shaped mainly by nature. Sheep and wind carved out hollows that became bunkers, and players followed the natural lie of the land. As golf moved inland in the late 1800s and early 1900s, designers began building parkland and heathland courses with planned hazards, trees and shaped greens. Architects such as Harry Colt, Alister MacKenzie, Donald Ross and A.W. Tillinghast created many courses still admired today. MacKenzie co-designed Augusta National with Bobby Jones, who founded the Masters.
Amateurs, Bobby Jones and the rise of golf as a spectator sport
In the early 1900s, top amateurs competed on equal terms with professionals. Bobby Jones, an American amateur, won the U.S. Open, The Open, the U.S. Amateur and the British Amateur in 1930, a feat then called the Grand Slam. He retired from competition soon after. Professionals such as Walter Hagen and Gene Sarazen helped raise the status of touring pros. After World War II, stars including Ben Hogan, Sam Snead and later Arnold Palmer, Jack Nicklaus and Gary Player, aided by television coverage, turned golf into a major spectator sport with global tours.
Women in golf history
Women have played golf for centuries. Mary, Queen of Scots, is often linked to the game in the 1500s, though accounts vary. The Ladies’ Golf Club at St Andrews was founded in 1867, and the first British Ladies Amateur Championship was held in 1893. Babe Didrikson Zaharias and Patty Berg were among the founders of the LPGA in 1950, and the women’s professional game has since grown worldwide.
How equipment changed the game
Equipment shaped golf’s growth. Early balls were made of leather stuffed with feathers, known as featheries, which were expensive and easily damaged. In the mid-1800s, the gutta-percha ball, or gutty, made from the dried sap of a tropical tree, was cheaper and more durable, helping golf reach more people. Around 1900, the rubber-cored ball, associated with Coburn Haskell, flew farther and transformed the game again. Clubs evolved from wooden shafts, often hickory, to steel shafts, which were accepted by the USGA in the 1920s and the R&A soon after. Later, persimmon woods gave way to metal and titanium drivers, and graphite shafts became common.
Golf spreads worldwide
Scottish and English golfers carried the game abroad through travel, trade and the British Empire. Courses appeared in India, Australia, Canada, South Africa and elsewhere during the 1800s. In the United States, golf grew rapidly in the late 1800s and early 1900s, leading to the founding of the USGA in 1894 and the PGA of America in 1916. The Masters, first played in 1934 at Augusta National Golf Club, became one of the world’s most famous tournaments. Women’s professional golf grew with the founding of the LPGA in 1950.
The four men’s majors
| Major | First played | Usual timing |
|---|---|---|
| The Masters | 1934 | April |
| PGA Championship | 1916 | May |
| U.S. Open | 1895 | June |
| The Open Championship | 1860 | July |
Golf in the Olympics
Golf was part of the Olympic Games in 1900 and 1904 but then disappeared from the program for more than a century. It returned at the 2016 Games in Rio de Janeiro with men’s and women’s individual competitions and has remained on the program since.
How to explore golf history
- Visit historic courses such as the Old Course at St Andrews, where public play is possible through a ballot and booking system.
- Tour golf museums, including the R&A World Golf Museum in St Andrews and the USGA Golf Museum in New Jersey.
- Read about major championships and their past winners.
- Try hickory golf, where players use replica historic clubs.
Common misconceptions
- Golf is an acronym. The popular claim that golf stands for a phrase is a myth; the word likely comes from older Scots or Dutch words.
- Golf always had 18 holes. Early courses varied, and 18 became standard only after St Andrews changed in 1764.
- The Masters is the oldest major. The Open, first played in 1860, is the oldest.
Note: dates and details in early golf history can vary between sources. For official histories, consult the R&A, USGA and major championship organizers.
Frequently asked questions
Where did golf originate?
Modern golf developed in Scotland in the 1400s, though similar stick-and-ball games existed elsewhere.
What is the oldest golf major?
The Open Championship, first played in 1860 at Prestwick.
Why does golf have 18 holes?
St Andrews reduced its course to 18 holes in 1764, and other clubs followed its example.
