A History of Golf

The MacDonald boys playing golf by 18th-century portrait painter Jeremiah Davison
Photo: Wikipedia

What country invented ‘golf?’ Many countries did. If there were sticks and objects that could be hurtled along, then there was ‘golf.’ No one knows for certain who started golf. But everybody knows who plays it now — everyone does.

The origin of the name ‘golf’ is believed to be the Dutch word of 'colf,' which means 'club.' In the medieval ages, golf was also known as “spel metten colve,’ which literally meant 'game with clubs.'

Nearly every area around the world has some claim to the origination of golf. Scotland, of course, has its claim. But so do China, Rome, England, France, Holland, Belgium, even Laos. Every country has a game consisting of sticks and balls, and every country is correct in its assumption that it invented the game. But there is no one country where ‘golf’ actually began.

Still, Scotland is widely considered to be the birthplace of golf. And it began haphazardly, a way of hitting a pebble or other roundish object into a hole by means of a stick or club.

Edinburgh, Scotland, claimed the first golfing society. The Gentlemen Golfers – later known as the Honourable Company of Edinburgh Golfers and today in residence at Muirfield – claim their club was already underway in 1744.

The first inter-Scotland club matches were played in 1857. The world would wait until 1860 for the first British Open to be played.

The British Open was being played 35 years before the U.S. Open. It has been called “The World Open.” Players from around the globe participate, as they have for a century or more. The British Open is all-inclusive. The U.S. Open has been moving in that direction for the last decade. But the British Open has been accepting a cast from around the world since the turn of the century.

It is not known for certain when golf came to America — only that when it got a toehold in the 20th century, America became the world leader in great players. By 1900, the explosion of the game in America was complete. The proof was that, at the turn of the century, there were more golf clubs in the United States than there were in Britain.

Tiger Woods came upon the scene in 1996. He won eight times in 1999, nine times in 2000, and won the four major championships in succession in 2000-2001, starting with the U.S. Open in 2000. Should his career be as successful in his 30s and 40s as it has been in his 20s, he will assume the mantle of “best player ever.”

Women have played a very large part in the history of golf, even before the last half of the 20th century when they finally achieved equality with men. Records of ladies playing golf exist all the way back to the time of Mary Queen of Scots.

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First Time On The GREEN

If you are a novice golfer, and need direction to put your game on the right track, you require learning many things in earnest. For example, you need skills on how to hold the club properly. Your stance should be proper, and you must learn the correct swing to connect the golf ball to the driver. The best way to learn is to look for a competent PGA professional and take lessons individually or in a group. This will go a long way in letting you develop your golfing skills and to acquire techniques to make your game enjoyable.

Cottesmore Golf and Country Club - Golfer Taking a Swing. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

You must learn slowly so that you get the best results. Do not just land up at the driving range, bring out your driver, and begin to swing. During the first session or at least half of the first session put all questions you have to your instructor and try to follow and understand the answers. You must also use this session to build up rapport and be at ease with each other.

In learning golf, your initial focus should be on putting. Putting is the best way to build a sound foundation for power control and most importantly let you learn to concentrate on the target. It will also help to build up your confidence to a very great extent as you find your putts going in the hole even from three or four feet. During the next phase, start practicing chipping and short pitch shots aimed at a particular target. By this, you will learn how to make solid contact with the ball and learn techniques to ensure your shots travel a long distance using very little power.

It is essential that you keep up with your practice, and try out techniques you learnt during the first session. Your instructor will need to quiz you, and clear your doubts on points related to any issues you may have encountered. It is essential that your instructor control your pace of learning at every stage. Overall, the first session means constant reviewing and repeating of basic golfing concepts. By the time you reach the end of the first session, you may have a putter and a number 9 iron and/or a PW for practicing. Being new to the game, you must always wait for some time before you buy yourself a complete set of clubs. 

A couple of sessions later you may find yourself in a position to tackle the full swing. A good way is to start by swinging without a ball. Concentrate on fundamental issues like stance, grip, and brushing the ground using your golf club. Start slowly beginning with short swings; this will let you grasp the concept of the full swing. When you can hit the ball consistently, do it slowly and comfortably aiming at short targets.

Do not forget to do your homework for building stamina, agility, and strength. Go for specific exercise programs exclusively meant for golfers. These exercises strengthen your hands, wrists, and torso, and prove very helpful to your game.

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GOLF Terminology

If you have just begun to play golf and fail to understand its terminology, do not worry, as this article will help you to master all these important golf terms and open your mind to understand the game well.

• Approach Shot- this shot helps you to position the ball on the green area.

• Amateur- a golfer who plays at a competitive level, however not for cash prize is called as amateur. Only a professional can play golf tournament for cash prize money.

• Address- before hitting the ball, the way a golfer positions his/her body is termed to address the ball.

• Abnormal ground condition- if the golf ground is under repairs or has some water collected, then it is termed as abnormal ground condition.
  
  

• Backswing- the opening part of the golf swing, which halts after the club stops moving from above your head to get set for the downswing position.

• Backspin- it is a reverse spin of the golf ball towards the target.

• Blade- it describes the head of the iron.

• Caddie- these are people, who are employed to carry your golf clubs around the course and are also capable to offer an advice on the game.

• Cart- it is either a small vehicle or a dolly, which players use to drive around the course to travel from one spot to another.

• Cavity Back Iron- it is a typical type of an iron that has majority of club heads’ weight distributed around its perimeter. There is a large cavity at the back of the head that is helpful to reduce the mass in both the back of the head and center.

• Club Face- the bottom part of the golf club is termed as clubface.

• Driver- the longest club in the golf bag is known as driver. This clubs also gives you higher distance than any other club.

• Draw- a shot that bends to the left side is called as draw.

• Duff- it is used, when you miss a shot or spoil a shot.

• Fat- when the clubface taps the ground before hitting the ball, it is called as fat.

• Forecaddie- he is a person, who directs you about placing the ball. This person comes from an outside agency.

• Iron- it is a club with metallic blade for the club head. Golfers have at least 8 to 10 irons that range from number 2- iron or sand wedge. Each iron offers different stroke on the ball.

• Line of Play- it is a position, where the player wants his ball to stop after the stroke. The line of play can extend vertically upward from the ground, but may not get to go beyond the hole.

• Penalty Stroke- this stroke is added to the score of the player or anything as per the rules of the game.
  
  

• Stroke- the forward movement of the club made to strike the ball is called as stroke. The golfer needs to check the downswing, before the club head touches the ball or the stroke would not be considered.

• Tee- a device used to place the ball off the ground is known as tee. This device is not more then 4 inches and is manufactured in a way that the line of play can be seen.

The above-mentioned terminologies will help you to get a basic idea about the game. Once you hit the ground, you would be an expert with these terms.

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GOLFING EXERCISES To Improve Your Play

Many people do not understand the necessity of exercising for golf. To them golfing itself is an exercise. However, the truth is that you definitely need to exercise your body if you want to play golf of a higher level and wish to have the least exposure to injury. Golf is physical and your body can easily suffer a break down. If you want your drive to result in the longest travel you have to have superior strength and flexibility specific to golf. These are facts that cannot be denied. All golfers need to do golfing exercises regularly if they wish to improve their game and the sooner they start the greater will be the results.

Golfers golfing beside Petty Pool Woods (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

There a difference in exercising in the gym by working out on machines and in doing golf exercises. Golf is played standing therefore the right exercises aimed at bettering your golfing will never require you to sit on machines. Golf exercises will be on your feet and in a dynamic posture. Keeping in view the unique demands of golf you need to have a different approach to exercising for improving your game.

Golfing exercises are not just strength exercises. A very big part consists of stretching exercises. Golfing exercises are a combination of both strength and stretching exercises that result in permanent flexibility. This is the perfect combination to give you the best results for increasing your golfing capabilities. When looking at golfing exercises you must consider the body position that is necessary for making a mechanically sound swing. Once you are able to understand the dynamics and the unique body positioning to this you can start on golf exercises that are specific to this position.

For proper golfing exercises always remember the following

• You must do most of your golf exercises on your feet.
• It will be best to do them in the specific posture relevant to the game.
• Always keep your knees flexible as in the case of swinging your club
• Indulge in the maximum number of rotational exercises
• Ensure that you also do exercises for the follow through part of a swing.
• Make sure that repetitions are high enough for developing muscular endurance relevant to golfing.

Golfing exercises can be great fun and will keep you motivated for sticking to your program. Non-adherence to the exercise program is the main reason why many people do not get results. Golfing exercises like any other exercise program and will not show results if exercises are not done consistently.

To keep yourself motivated try picturing yourself mentally as an expert golfer. Envision yourself as a stronger and fitter golfer. Imagine yourself blasting all your drives and think of having consistently low scores as you play in your usual golf groups.

By having a better understanding of golfing exercises you will be able to stay fitter that your golfing partners and will be able to enjoy the game much more as you will find a natural improvement in your golfing skills.

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3 GOLF Swing Drills to Improve Your Putting

An animation of a full golf swing displaying
 the appropriate and professional technique.
(Photo credit: Wikipedia)

After hitting the ball as close to the hole as possible, it is just a matter of putting so you can move on to the next one. While this may sound easy given the short distance, there are still some who have a hard time. To help you out, here are 4 golf swing drills you can try. 

The first is the one handed drill. You do this by practice putting ten balls using only your training hand. This drill lets you focus on the palm of your hand as it moves towards the cup. 

Next, practice putting using your target hand. The emphasis here is for you to concentrate on your back hand moving towards the cup. 

When you do this drill using either hand, be conscious of the toe of your putter in the follow through. Should this turn away from the cup or point toward it, this means you are turning your hand. So you know you are doing it right, the face of the putter should be square to the cup. 

Another drill is to practice putting with one eye. Some golfers do this because it stops them from lifting their head prematurely. If you have played this game often, you can even try putting with your eyes closed.

But won’t closing your eyes make it harder for you to see where the ball is going? Yes but research has shown that when you try to putt with your eyes open, there is interference with the brain/muscle control system. By closing your eyes, you are relying more on your hands to guide the ball into the hole. And how will you know if the ball goes in? By simply using your sense of hearing. 

To do this, you have to practice first putting first with your eyes open at a range of 10 to 50 feet from the hole. After putting these balls with your eyes open, do the same thing this time with your eyes closed. If the ball goes in the hole, you know that sink the ball with your eyes closed. 

Another eyes closed technique involves dropping some balls to the ground and just putting them. The objective here is simply to let you feel how the stroke flows back and forth. Do the same thing also with your eyes open. Now that you know the difference, try to incorporate that when you are putting the balls into the hole. 

The last golf swing drill is called the alignment drill. To do this, you lay two clubs on the green about six inches apart and make sure that they are parallel to each other. Now putt the ball to see if your stroke is aligned at impact and steady on the back and forward stroke. Do this several times and if you get tired, take a break and rest for a while before resuming the drill. 

Practicing some golf swing putting drills like those mentioned will surely help you improve on your game. Who knows? You might even win when you are playing 18 holes with friends. If you can do that at short distances, the only thing to practice on now is your long game because this is just as important as the short game.

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