The game of Golf, once regarded as an elitist sport, has slowly spread all over the globe, to become one of the most popular sports ever. From its humble beginnings in Europe, it has made its way across continents and captured the hearts of many in Asia. Golf in Malaysia, for example, has spread to every corner of the country, with big championship level golf courses, like The Els Club Malaysia, earning international recognition.
However, there was a time when it wasn’t so loved; in fact, according to historians, it was even banned by the Scottish Parliament in the 1400’s because it was said to interfere with archery practice, which was necessary for protecting the land. The origins of the game of golf are vague and highly debated. Most believe it stems from ancient Rome, where a game called paganica, involved hitting a leather ball with a bent stick. While others cite a game called ‘chuiwan ‘in China as the root. A Ming Dynasty scroll depicts members of the imperial court hit small balls into holes with what appeared to be golf clubs. Whatever the origin, the modern version was created in Scotland and eventually spread throughout Europe.
The first known golf course on record is Musselburgh Links, in Scotland. The first courses were chiefly built across ‘link lands’, soil covered dunes that were located in front of beaches. This is where the term “links course” originates from, and is still used today to describe the same kinds of courses.
Golf is played according to strict guidelines that were put into place in 1754, with an underlying principle focusing on fairness throughout the game. In addition, there’s a set of guidelines known as golf etiquette which concerns safety, the pace of a game and a player’s responsibility to chip in to the maintenance of the course. Although there are no penalties for any etiquette breaches, players follow the rules to ensure everyone enjoys a good playing experience. This, at the end of the day, is all a golfer really wants from a game.
Fritzjames Stephen is a travel writer, who writes content based on the myriad of experiences and indulgences that the world has to offer travellers across all walks of life. Google+
