A history of golf clubs

The golf club has changed considerably over many centuries to become the sleek, strong club that it is today

In the earliest days of golf on the eastern coast of Scotland , players used primitive equipment to play the game in a rather haphazard and casual manner. While players initially carved their own golf clubs and balls from wood, they soon turned to skilled craftsmen to produce competitive equipment.

Around the 1600s a set of clubs consisted of a set of play clubs (longnoses) for driving, fairway clubs (or grassed drivers) for medium range shots, spoons for short range shots, niblicks (similar to today's wedges) and a putting cleek.

Club heads were made from tough wood such as beech, holly, pear and apple. Shafts were made from ash or hazel. The head was connected to the shaft using a splint and then bound tightly using leather straps. The cost, time and effort which went into making golf clubs priced them beyond the reach of the masses. The clubs especially long-noses and niblicks were also prone to breakage and a golfer could expect to break at least one club during a round. These factors meant that golf was typically associated with the upper echelons of society.

Second generation golf clubs

The invention of the Guttie ball in 1848 by Rev. Adam Paterson quickly rendered longnoses obsolete. Instead bulgers were used to cope with increased stresses incurred by using the new ball. Bulgers closely resemble today's woods in that they have a bulbous head.

Although for a long time qolf equipment was associated with Scotland , by 1900, persimmon imported from America had replaced beech and other hard woods as the material of choice for club heads. A popular alternative was aluminium in keeping with the tradition of hand-forging metal club heads. Indeed in 1902, E. Burr introduced groove-faced irons for increased backspin.

Modern golf clubs

Up to the 1930s there was a rich variety of clubs available using both modern and traditional materials. To prevent golfers using an inordinate number of clubs and to promote individual skill, the R&A introduced its 14 club rule in 1939. The modern convention for numbering woods and irons rather than naming them dates from this period.

Since the end of World War II, golf club development has been influenced by research into synthetic and composite materials. The casting method of manufacturing clubs heads was introduced in 1963. This made clubs more affordable than ever. The graphite shaft was introduced in 1973 which offers rigidity, lightness and increased strength over steel shafts. However, most amateur golfers still use steel shafted clubs because of their affordability.

The most successful club in history is Callaway's over sized wood, the Big Bertha which was introduced in 1991. Today, there is an enormous variety of woods to choose from. The latest trend is woods with titanium heads and graphite shafts which are very expensive.

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