The eyes of golf lovers worldwide are currently on the Augusta National Golf Club as Augusta, GA, hosts the 2014 Masters Golf Tournament. This ancient game, first thought to have been played by the Scots in the Fourteenth Century, is today much different than it was even a hundred years ago. Even novice golfers are playing better than ever before—the average handicap of golfers has decreased consistently over the past 15 years. What can account for this? Golf innovations have made playing easier, and recent equipment innovations have taken playing to a whole new level. Let's look at the history of the basic rules and equipment used at the Masters Tourn ament today.
The Golf Ball
The modern golf ball—round, white, dimpled, and solid—has only been in use since the late 1960s. The first golf balls in use were hard round wooden balls made by carpenters from beech and box trees. Imagine being hit at high speed with that projectile!
Feathery
The Fourteenth Century also brought us of the Feathery, a hand-sewn round leather pouch filled with chicken or goose feather (thus giving it is unique name). The creation of a feathery was a long process, as the feathers were boiled and softened before being placed in the pouches. Experienced craftsmen could only make a few balls per day, but few of them were perfectly round and often went off course . Wet balls decrease [...]
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