Golf is an old game that dates back to 15^th Century Scotland. Though its timeline is quite old, the techniques and the equipment of the game are not so old, because the techniques and the equipment have evolved from time to time to become what we see today. As the game evolved, the clubs evolved along with it, and this has revolutionized the sport.

1. Earliest Golf Clubs and Golf Balls

The 15^th Century clubs did not look like the clubs that are used today to play golf. The 15^th Century clubs were crafted entirely of wood. The crafters of clubs in those days did not follow any specific silhouette to make the clubs. Rather, they made the clubs as they pleased and thought, would be a good structure to give to a club. King James IV was the first monarch to build commissioned clubs. James IV commissioned the royal club maker, William Mayne.

The earliest golf sets included longnoses, grassed drivers, spoons, niblicks, and a putting cleek. As these clubs were made up of wood, they were very fragile and yet very expensive. Hence, the game of golf remained limited to only the privileged sections of the society, as not everybody could afford getting the equipment.

In the earlier times, golf balls were also believed to be made of wood. But no specific proof has been found out of golf being played with wooden balls, and hence it remains a debatable matter. However, from 1486 to 1618, the Scottish golfers used to play with hairy golf balls that they used to import from the Netherlands.

2. The First Transition of the Clubs and Balls

The evolution of golf clubs began in the early 17^th Century when the clubmakers started to experiment with different materials to enhance the durability and the distance of the clubs. The clubmakers tried to make durable club faces with various materials like leather, metal, and even with bone fragments. The experiments made it possible to forge iron into wooden club heads.

The hairy golf balls were replaced by featherie balls in 1618. These featherie balls were the fashion of the day. Since these balls were very fragile, iron could not be forged into wooden clubs. Nevertheless, these featherie balls, stuffed with feathers in the inside, improved golfing performances.

Around 1750, club heads started to be made entirely of iron. This revolutionized the game, and continued to be used very popularly, till the hickory wood became the standard material to be used in making the shafts due to its impressive durability.

3. The Industrial Revolution and how it revolutionized golf

The Industrial Revolution brought massive changes in the game of golf. As industries grew in considerable rate and numbers all over Europe after the Industrial Revolution began in the 1800s, the game of golf also began to develop and take the shape of modern golf. By the 1870s, mass production of iron golf clubs and shafts was possible in the factories. These clubs were cheaper, more affordable and easier to make in abundance, and hence, these clubs became more consistent.

Early 20th Century was the era in which golf really changed and started to take the shape that we see today. In 1908, groves were added to clubs so that more backspin could be created. This helped the ball in reaching further distances with each swing shot. Steel shafts were introduced in 1925, and with this the game evolved as a modern game.

When Industrial Revolution was giving shape to better quality clubs, Dr. Robert Adam Paterson discovered the Guttie/Gutta balls, which were made up from the sap of Malaysian Sapodilla tree. The rubber like quality of the sap and the less expenses require to produce these balls made it a popular choice among the golfers o the times. The Gutta balls were evolved even more by Coburn Haskell in 1898, who gave it a completely new shape and the inside was made with rubber. Soon, the balls made by Haskell became the standard for modern day golf balls.

After 1925, the names like “niblicks” or “longnoses” were considered whimsical. Clubs were given numerical names after the 14-Club rule was introduced by the Royal and Ancient Golf Club of St. Andrews. Until 1939, golfers used to keep at least 20-30 clubs in their golf kit. But presently with the touches of its glorified history, golf balls as well as clubs have become stronger and more organized than before as various hard metals apart from iron are used to make clubs and shafts. Hybrids of wood and iron are also in fashion since 1990s.