With hundreds of years of history all over the world, golf has gone through many changes and adapted to the world around it, which, as a result, has caused many once common facts about the game to be lost to time.
So, we decided to take a trip in our time machine to rediscover some of the most interesting facts about that game!
Read on to learn some very interesting golf facts and test your knowledge to see how many you already know.
1.) About 125,000 golf balls are hit into the water on the infamous 17th hole at Sawgrass every year! If you have snorkel gear and like to collect golf balls, you may want to add this to your bucket list.
2.) PGA players pay their own travel expenses with exception of the top golf pros where their fees are paid by their sponsors. (Hence Tiger’s private jet).
3.) Golf balls were originally made of feathers wrapped in leather before they were eventually replaced with wood balls and eventually getting to the multiplayer balls we have now.
4.) Golf was one of only two sports players on the moon. The ball was hit with a 6 iron and it is by far the longest hit that will ever be recorded… Once the ball stops moving…
5.) There are over 34,000 golf courses in the world and counting. (side fact: China actually banned the construction of new courses years ago, but they are still in development. The architects just conveniently leave out the fact that they are building a golf course in the plans!)
6.) Modern golf was invented in Scottland in 1457.
7.) Subsequently, golf was actually outlawed by the Scottish government multiple times because they thought that it interfered with military training. (I don’t know about you but I am definitely at war with my slice so I’m not sure what they were talking about…).
8.) You have a 1 in 12,500 chance of making a hole-in-one with each drive, so keep at it!
9.) The chances of making two holes-in-one in a single round are 1 in 67,000,000.
10.) The longest drive ever recorded (aside from the one in space) went 515 yards. But, what’s even more incredible is that it was hit in 1974!!
11.) Tiger Woods has made over $100,000,000 in tournament earnings so far, but his first payout from a professional tournament was actually under $3,000.
12.) Tiger Woods made his first hole in one at the age of 8.
13.) Phil Michelson is actually right-handed. He just learned to play left-handed by imitating his father.
14.) Caddies originated in France where french students would carry clubs for golfers to try and earn some extra money. The word itself is derived from the French word “cadet” which is their term for a student.
15.) The term birdie was actually coined by accident. In 1899, American golfer, Ab Smith said that he played a “bird of a shot” which soon caught out and eventually changed to the modern term “birdie”
What did you think of these 15 strange facts? Know of any interesting one that we missed? Let us know below!
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