The Spread Of Golf – EARLY EXCURSIONS
King James VI of Scotland had ascended to the English throne in 1603, and he, his son, and his followers are said to have played golf at Blackheath in London. During the 18th and 19th centuries, Scottish and other armies introduced golf to the British colonies and other places where they were stationed. The first African golf courses were built by British slave traders on Bunce Island in Sierra Leone during the 1770s.
THE LATE 19TH CENTURY BOOM
Queen Victoria and Prince Albert built Balmoral Castle on the Scottish Highlands in the 1850s. Transport between London and Scotland is becoming popular, and many people from London want to vacation in Scotland. Around the same time, courage was developed. Gutty is a mass produced golf ball that is stronger and of better quality. Golf became popular throughout the British Isles, and new clubs were founded in the 1860s. In the 1880s, golf clubs were present in Australia, Canada, Ireland, South Africa and New Zealand.
UNITED STATES OF AMERICA
Various reports of how the game of golf in New York went down in history books, including people being warned against playing golf on Sundays and laws passed to stop people playing golf on the streets and breaking people’s windows. A print advertisement in the Royal Gazette in New York City in 1779 featuring golf clubs and balls. The South Carolina Golf Club was founded in 1787 in Charleston, South Carolina. The United States Golf Association was formed in 1894, and 267 golf clubs had been founded by 1910. By 1932, USGA had more than 1,100 golf clubs in its affiliates. Walter Hagen was the first American to win the British Open Championship in 1922.
JAPAN
British expats who founded Japan’s first golf club in 1903, and in 1913, Tokyo Golf Club was founded. The Japan Golf Association was founded in 1924. During World War II, most of the golf courses in Japan were used for military purposes. After the war, the golf course was finally returned to Japanese control in 1952. The number of golf courses in Japan increased over the next several decades, and golf continued to be a popular sport there.