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Apr 18, 1400
The First Golf Ball Was Invented
The earliest golf balls were made out of hardwood trees like Elm or Beech and are traced back to Holland, They weren't very aerodynamic but they worked. -
The Featherie Was Invented
The Featherie is a "new" ball that was inspired from an old version of a tennis ball. It is a handmade ball of feathers (where it gets its name) wrapped in cow hide or leather. It was dried so when you hit it, it wouldn't explode. It wasn't very aerodynamic so it didn't fly very far and it was hard to make it so it was a perfect sphere. Also they were very expensive because of all the labor put into them. -
Nothing
The 1700s were boring in the life of the golf ball. They still used the featherie -
The Gutta Percha Ball
This ball is nicknamed the "guttie." Made by Adam Paterson of St. Andrews. It is made from the juice of the leaves from a Malaysian tree. When heated it can be easily molded and formed into a sphere. It was much cheaper to make and is more sturdy than a featherie. -
Hand Hammered Gutta Ball
People realized that the Guttie got chipped and damaged. This actually improved the ball's flight, not impede it. As more people noticed this, people started putting indents in the ball before anyone started playing with it.http://www.biggolflesson.com/golfballhistory.html http://www.golfeurope.com/almanac/history/golf_ball.htm -
The Bramble Ball
Now the gutta ball was made in molds with more consistency, quality and affordability. -
Bramble Ball Mold
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The Rubber Ball (Haskell)
Invented by Coburn Haskell it is a core with a rubber casing around it. -
Dimples Were Put On The Haskell Ball
After this, golf balls took on their modern form -
The US Golf Association
The USGA standardized the size and shape of the golf ball and the modern ball was born!
