History & Trivia

Golf collects 'facts' the way a bag collects tees, so every date on these pages has a document behind it: the National Library of Scotland for the early game, The R&A's own pages for 1754 and the 18 holes, Scottish Golf History for where the words come from, Quote Investigator for the famous lines, the championship records for the stories, NASA for the one golf shot on the Moon. Where a famous claim has no source, the page says so and names the earliest version anyone has found.

Read who invented golf (nobody, and Scotland), the timeline from the 1457 ban to the World Handicap System, the stories with the lesson a coach takes from each, and the quotes with their real origin, which is usually a better story than the fake attribution. Then try the quiz: ten questions a round, each answer with its source, and the same ten for anyone you send the link to. None of it needs a login, and every source is a link you can check yourself.

Where to start

1. 1
   Who invented golf?

   The evidence in dates and the Dutch and Chinese claims judged fairly.

2. 2
   Golf stories that really happened

   Sarazen, Hogan, Seve, Van de Velde and the Moon, each with its lesson.

3. 3
   Golf trivia quiz

   Ten questions, every answer sourced; share the link for the same quiz.

Quick answers

Why was golf banned in Scotland in 1457?

Because it kept men from archery practice, which the kingdom's defence depended on. The ban is the earliest written mention of the game, and it was restated in 1471 and 1491.

Why 18 holes?

St Andrews reduced its course from 22 holes to 18 and the rest of the world copied the home of golf. The whisky-bottle story is a joke.

Did Mark Twain say golf is a good walk spoiled?

Almost certainly not: the earliest version is in a London paper of 1897, anonymous, and Twain's name was first attached in 1948, long after his death.