History of Golf

Arguably golf’s interesting origin began five centuries in the past. It is a historical fact that due to the interference of golf with much more serious combat drills James II of Scotland banned golf in an act of Parliament on March 6 in the year 1457.  There is general agreement among historians and golf fans alike that the Scots were the first golfers who became somewhat addicted to the sport. However the persons responsible for the invention of golf is open to debate. And debate will ensue if you breech the subject with the right persons.

It has been suggested that bored sheepherders became quite exceptional at knocking round shaped stones into rabbit holes with their wooden shepherds staffs. Making a competitive game of the boredom seemed inevitable. After all women’s lib was not yet even considered so that means the shepherds were men. Lets face another fact of history, men tend to be more of a competitive nature. Various forms of golf were played as early as the fourteenth century. These games were played in Holland, Belgium, France as well as in Scotland, thus the debate of golf’s origin is rightly fueled.

There is another historical fact that Scottish Baron, James VI, was the man who delivered the game we know today as golf to the English. For many years the game was played on severely rugged terrain, where no proper upkeep was required. In most accounts golf was played with crudely cut holes in the ground where the earth was reasonably flat.

It was a group of Edinburgh golfers who first formed an organized club. In 1744 the Honorable Company of Edinburgh Golfers was established. At this time in history the first thirteen laws of golf were drawn up for an annual competition. This first competition consisted of players from any part of Great Britain or Ireland.

One of the earliest golf clubs that were formed outside golf’s debatable native home of Scotland was the Royal Blackheath Golf Club of England. Blackheath came into existence in 1766 and the Old Manchester Golf Club was founded on the Kersal Moor in 1818.

By the late 1800’s the Royal Montreal Club and the Quebec Golf Club were to become the first in North America. It wasn’t until 1888 that golf resurfaced in the United States with more fervor than each prior surfacing. Even then it was a Scotsman, John Reid, who first built a three-hole course in Yonkers New York. St. Andrews Club of Yonkers was built in a thirty-acre site near to the original three-hole course.

From the hesitant and fitful start golf grew rapidly as the new national pastime in America. Modern for its time the golf club, Shinnecock Hills was founded in 1891 and in the nine years left in that century more than one thousand prestigious golf clubs opened in North America.

The historical value of golf is as interesting as any part of our heritage. Following the path that golf took to get from a shepherds field to the amazing golf courses that dot our culture today it is no wonder golf remains a popular pastime in all parts of the world.

Slang Golf Terms

Golf, like many other sports, uses terms that are all their own. A golf dictionary might help but not for the slang thrown around. The slang golf terms are usually regular words that have a completely different meaning in the game of golf. Here are some of the most common slang golf terms that you might come across during a round of golf.

Hangman - this term means that you have scored a 9 on a particular hole in golf. It comes from the resemblance that some people see between the hangman’s pole and the number 9.

Bo Derek - this term was created from the movie 10 with Bo Derek, but instead of referring to being somebody’s desire the term refers to a score of 10 on any hole in golf, which nobody wants.

Kitty Litter - means sand bunker. You will also hear golfers referring to the sand bunker as a bunker, beach, cat box, or even sand trap. It has gotten these names because the sand inside the bunker resembles kitty litter.

Fourball Alliance - this is simply the name of a golf tournament format, mostly used in South Africa. In the United States, it can be referred to as 1-2-3 best ball or money ball. The score on each hole a set number of the team member’s score is combined on each hole for one team score.

Air Mail – this term refers to the fact that you hit the ball too far when you were aiming for a specific spot. It can also refer to the fact that you overshot the green.

Dawn Patrol – this term refers to any golfer player or group of players who try to play as early as possible in the morning, they get to the golf course as soon as they open and are the first ones on the course. Dew Sweepers also means the same thing.

Goat Track – A goat track is used to talk about a golf course that is in really poor condition, you can also hear the term dog track used along the same lines.

Fried Egg – this term is used to describe a golf ball that has been hit into the sand bunker, but the ball has settled into the sand giving it the appearance of a fried egg. It resembles a fried egg because of the pattern that is left in the sand and only the top half of the ball is showing, similar to the yolk of an egg.

Rainmaker - this is used to describe a shot that has a very high trajectory. A great example of this kind of shot would be a lob wedge, but it can also happen accidentally.

Duck Hook - this is simply a different term for a snap hook, which is a very severe form of a hook. With a snap hook the ball immediately begins to curve from right to left, the ball then dips to the ground and runs off to the person’s hook side.

Play the Pros in The British Open

For amateur golfers, having an “open” tournament is a great opportunity to break into the world of professional golf.  But the U.S. Open isn’t the only open tournament – there’s also the British Open for the golfers “across the pond”.  Open tournaments were designed to allow amateur golfers to perhaps break into the pro pool by winning one of these contests.

Many people think that the U.S. Open was the first open championship to be founded, but that just isn’t true.  The British Open was being played 35 years before the United States got in on the open tournament phenomenon.  Since the turn of the century, the British Open has included amateurs from all countries.  The U.S. Open is currently trying to make a move towards this trend, but for years, The British Open has been known as “The World Open”.

Originally designed as a way for unknown golfers to make a name for themselves, the “opens” have long been touted as the greatest chance an amateur has for worldwide fame and fortune as a professional golfer.  The British Open was the first tournament to bring forth this amazing idea, and golfers all over the world became excited at the prospect of becoming a pro.

The British Open is one of the four major golf tournaments of the year and winning it is a great honor.  Just as with the U.S. Open, it is one of the championships that tournament professionals strive to achieve and wear the honor with pride.  However, amateurs should beware.  Because the British Open is an open event, the pros can play too.

The last time an amateur won a British Open was back in 1930 when American legend Bobby Jones won with an overall score of 291.  Since that time, there have been many amateurs who have made good showings, but as far as winning the open, that hasn’t happened in quite some time.

To qualify for the British Open, you must strive for one of the 156 places that are available.  Most of the field of players has achieved entry into the open through exemptions by playing well throughout the year on the tour.  The rest of the field has won qualifying rounds in local events that lead them to the “big show” and perhaps the chance of the lifetime!

The British Open – just like the U.S. Open – is a wonderful way for excellent amateur golfers to break into the professional circuit by doing what they love – playing the game of golf.  The British Open has a long and storied history and while considered one of the major events in the PGA, still holds a bit of mystery and hope for those who dream of a life as a PGA professional.

Explanation of The PGA

PGA stands for Professional Golf Association and is a generic term referring to the professional organization that most pro golfers belong to. There are several PGAs around the world including the British Isles PGA and the Ladies PGA. Many of these PGAs will have an indication of the territory they belong to such as LPGA of Japan, etc.

Dedicated to the promotion of the game of golf everywhere, the American Professional Golfers Association (PGA) can trace its origins back to 1916 when a group of New York area golf professionals, accompanied by several prominent amateur golfers attended a luncheon hosted by department store magnate Rodman Wanamaker. The purpose of the gather was to discuss forming a national organization to promote interest in the game of golf.

The PGA’s first order of business was to establish the organization’s objectives. The members agreed to the following:

* Promote interest in the game of golf

* Elevate the standards of the golf professional’s vocation

* Protect the mutual interest of its members

* Hold meetings and tournaments for the benefit of members

* Assist deserving unemployed members to obtain positions

* Establish a benevolent relief fund for deserving members

* Accomplish any other objective which may be determined by the Association from time to time

The first PGA Championship tournament was held in October of 1916 at the Siwanoy Country Club in Bronxville, NY. Jim Barnes defeated Jock Hutchison. Wanamaker honored his pledge and donated a prize purse of $2,580 and the trophy which today still bears his name.

When the PGA of America was formed, there was no distinction between club and touring professionals. As the PGA began to develop and promote tournaments, it became easier for the touring professionals to devote their efforts to just playing tournaments and exhibitions. In 1968, PGA tournament players, who comprised a small percentage of the membership, broke away from the Association to form a Tournament Players Division and acquire more control of the tournament schedule.

In 1975, the Tournament Players Division was renamed the PGA Tour. Today, the PGA Tour is headquartered in Ponte Vedra, Fla. The PGA Tour and the PGA of America maintain a close working relationship, and most professional golfers maintain dual membership in the organizations.

The PGA of America conducts more than 30 tournaments for its members and apprentices. Through a network of 41 section offices, the Association maintains a total commitment to the club professional, helping the membership meet the demands of today’s marketplace and addressing vital issues such as pace of play, environmental concerns and accessibility.

Since 1916, the PGA of America has established new standards of excellence by expanding educational opportunities, programs and services for its members. However, the Association stands firm and continues to flourish on the principles that were set down by its founders.

Professional Golf Dreams

As with any other sport golf also does have a professional level. The difference between playing professional golf and amateur golf, however, can be a very fine line. There are a lot of amateur golfers that can score at the professional level, however, they are unable to do it consistently and often miss out on the tournaments that can qualify them to get on the tour.

Nonetheless, it is a dream of many golfers to play professional golf one day and make a living doing something that they truly, truly love. Your office is the course, and your co-workers are people who love the game just as much as you do. You share common interests at the professional level of golf and it can be a very satisfying career. But isn’t that obvious?

Qualifying to play professional golf is another story altogether. The field is very competitive and it can be extremely difficult to break through. Some people try their whole lives to qualify and always come up short. It takes a lot of practice, a lot of dedication, and an ability to take a lot of disappointment to play professional golf, so know what you’re in for!

To get started playing professional golf, you will first have to qualify for “Q School” or Qualifying School. Q Schools are annual qualifying tournament for leading golf tours like the PGA and the LPGA. In Q School, a fixed number of players win membership to the tour for the following season. In professional golf, this is referred to as your “tour card”. You will then be able to play in most of the tour’s events without having to qualify.

Getting through the Q school is very competitive and most professional golfers never achieve it. There can be up to four stages to negotiate each of them like a regular golf tournament with only a small number of players going on to the next state. The final qualifying school may be played over up to six rounds compared with the standard four rounds in a professional golf tournament. However, players who are successful at Q school can reach the elite level of competition very quickly.

You can also qualify to play professional golf in other ways. Finishing near the top of the money list on the tour’s developmental tour, winning a tournament on the tour after qualifying or as a sponsor’s invitee, or winning enough money on multiple events on the tour to meet whatever criteria the tour may lay down for promotion to full membership. This last one was how Tiger Woods gained his first tour card.

Playing professional golf is not an easy career to pursue, but it is a great way to make a living! Persistence, patience, and a great game of golf can all get you on your way to playing professional golf, but be realistic and know that it will take time.