History of the Golf Ball

History of the Golf Ball

Although the fetherie golf ball was not technically invented till the 1600’s, 
people have been playing golf over 1000 years with a stick and a wooden ball 
or leather ball. The featherie ball was a hand sewn bag made out of cowhide 
stuffed with wet feathers of a goose and then the bag was painted. The 
process was complex since the feathers were boiled, stuffed in the bag, 
compacted, and stitched to make a round ball which was difficult. Regardless 
of the problems like the stitches coming undone and the bag splitting open, 
people still enjoyed hitting the ball and this ball used for nearly 400 years.

History mentions that golf is generally considered to be a Scottish invention 
and that a strategy of hitting a small ball in a hole in the ground using 
clubs was played in 17th-century. The word golf is a derivative of Dutch kolf 
meaning stick, club, and bat. Some say golf was played years earlier in 
Europe. 

The oldest golf course in the world is in The Old Links at Musselburgh 
Racecourse and evidence shows that golf was played on Musselburgh Links in 
early 16th century.

Dr Robert Adams invented the gutta percha ball also known at guttie in 1848. 
It was made from gutta percha, a natural gum in Malaysia. They were cheaper 
to manufacture and could be produced with various types of textured surfaces 
and became popular very quickly.

In 1898 Coburn Haskell designed the first rubber-cored ball. Walter Travis, 
author of the book Practical Golf, won his second U.S. Amateur championship 
and became the first golfer to win a major title with the Haskell ball. Guess
he didn't need the golf information channel.

Then in the 20th century multi-layer balls were developed with a core which 
was solid or liquid filled and then wound with a layer of rubber thread and 
thin outer shell. Factories experimented how to make the ball spin faster and 
go further. 

In 1906 Goodrich introduced a golf ball with a rubber core filled with 
compressed air, but it was discontinued since it was prone to explode in warm 
weather.

In 1908 William Taylor received a patent for a ball surface with circular 
depressions which is similar to the dimple pattern we see in balls today.

The USGA in 1931 increased the minimum size of the golf ball from 1.62 to 1.
68 inches and decreased the weight from 1.62 ounces to 1.55. R & A and the 
USGA continue to differ over the size of the golf ball for many years.

Today there are hundreds of different names of golf balls designed for speed 
and distance. They have cores of titanium compounds, hybrid material, 
pressurized and some softer shells. They consist of various synthetic 
materials like urethane blends.


Golf balls of all types are available to suit the needs of various skill 
levels of players and offer features such as:
• Enhanced aerodynamics with slightly higher flight for longer distance
• Combination of soft feel, high performance control, and long distance
• Combination of distance with soft feel and durability for golfers with 
average of moderate swing speeds
• Enhanced aerodynamics with slightly lower flight for longer distance, 
softer feel and improved greenside play
• Extreme distance without sacrificing soft feel and greenside playability.

The goal of the ultimate golf ball is speed, distance, performance, and 
hopefully a hole-in-one.