The “club” (and there was only the one) was a Wilson Staff 6-iron head weighing about half a pound that Shepard paid the pro at the River Oaks County Club in Houston to rig for attachment to the “contingency return sample collector” he was to use on the moon in place of the sample bag.
Full Answer
What golf club did Alan Shepard carry to the Moon?
Keeping his head down as much as he could, he made contact a second time. The Moon Club, a specially crafted 6-iron clubhead carried by Alan Shepard onboard the Apollo 14 mission to the moon as seen on August 30, 2007 at the USGA Headquarters in Far Hills, NJ. (USGA/John Mummert)
Why did Shepard bring a golf club to space?
Maggie Lagle, a historian for the USGA, told Fox News that NASA did not have a sense of humor after Apollo 13 and would not have let Shepard take a golf club on the mission, so Shepard snuck a club and balls into space with him. “It was a pretty big deal for him to sneak the club-head and golf balls into space!” said Lagle.
Did an Apollo 14 astronaut play golf on the Moon?
50 years ago, an Apollo 14 astronaut played golf on the moon. Here's the inside story. A still from video footage shows NASA astronaut Alan Shepard preparing to hit a golf ball on the moon. By this point in the moonwalk, the astronauts had already put away the still-photograph cameras. (Image credit: NASA)
Where is the real Shepard Golf Club?
The real Shepard club along with that traveling sock are actually held by the United States Golf Association Museum in Far Hills, New Jersey. Taste the World! An eye-opening journey through the history, culture, and places of the culinary world. Order Now
See more
How far did Alan Shepard's golf ball go on the moon?
But in the Moon's airless environment with just one-sixth the gravity of Earth, Shepard later estimated that his modest pitch shot carried the ball about 200 yards (600 feet).
What golf club was used on the moon?
Technically speaking, the golf club was a Wilson Staff Dyna-Power 6-iron head attached to a sampling tool — a five-piece tool loosely held together by string when not fully assembled — that was made of aluminum and Teflon.
What happened to the golf ball that Alan Shepard hit on the moon?
Shepard brought two balls with him. The first ball he only skimmed, and it was easily recovered by colleague Edgar Mitchell in a nearby crater. By the second ball, Shepard had gotten the hang of it and sent it flying. That ball then remained missing for half a century.
What unusual thing did Alan Shepard do on the moon?
a golf ballAll because of a one-handed swing by Shepard, still the only person to hit a golf ball on the moon. “It was designed to be a fun thing,” Shepard said in the 1998 interview, five months before his death at age 74. “Fortunately, it is still a fun thing.”
Is the golf ball still on the moon?
There are two golf balls on the moon. They were taken there by Alan Shepard in 1971, during the Apollo 14 mission. Shepard was the first American into space, and the fifth person to ever walk on the moon… but most impressively, he was the first (and only) person to ever play golf outside of the earth's atmosphere!
Did Buzz Aldrin play golf on the moon?
Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin attempted to play golf on the Moon. False. It was, in fact, Alan Shepard who took a golf ball to the moon on Apollo 14 – he hit it with a sample collector and it went out of sight!
Did Alan Shepard sneak a golf club on the moon?
The Moon Club, a specially crafted 6-iron clubhead, weighing 16.5 ounces, that was carried by Alan Shepard onboard the Apollo 14 mission to the moon, as seen at the USGA Golf Museum. The club featured a clubhead attached to a retractable teflon shaft ordinarily used on a device to collect soil samples.
Did Neil Armstrong leave a bracelet on the moon?
Roger Launius, the former NASA chief historian and a former senior curator at the National Air and Space Museum, agreed, saying, “there is no evidence to support the assertion that he left a bracelet of his daughter on the moon.” Though apparently fiction, the moment is a critical one.
How many golf balls are on the moon?
two golf ballsThere are two golf balls on the moon, placed there by Alan Shepard, a NASA astronaut in the Apollo 14 mission in 1971.
How old was Alan Shepard when he walked on the moon?
47Shepard piloted the Lunar Module Antares. He became the fifth and, at the age of 47, the oldest man to walk on the Moon, and the only one of the Mercury Seven astronauts to do so.
Did Alan Shepard and John Glenn get along?
Not only did their personalities clash, but Glenn was outspoken about how he disagreed with some of the astronauts' alleged infidelity, which would have included Shepard. Things between them were likely only made worse when they were selected as lead astronaut and alternate for the first Mercury flight.
Who was the smartest astronaut?
In 1996 he became only the second astronaut to fly on six spaceflights, and he is the most formally educated astronaut with seven academic degrees. Musgrave is the only astronaut to have flown aboard all five Space Shuttles.
Why did the ball travel farther than it would have on Earth?
And due to the one-sixth gravity and lack of atmosphere, the ball traveled significantly farther than it would have on Earth. The absence of aerodynamic forces on the ball, and lack of the spin-induced “magnus effect” caused by the ball’s dimples, meant that it followed a perfectly parabolic flight.
Who was the pilot of Apollo 13?
CAPCOM (Capsule Communicator) Fred Haise, who was the lunar module pilot for Apollo 13, applied some astute commentary from his position in Mission Control: “Looked like a slice to me, Al.”. The location of the first “shanked” ball can be seen in the crater to the right.
What is the moon bunker?
The moon is effectively one giant, un-raked, rock-strewn bunker. There were no “preferred lies” as a fully-suited astronaut would struggle to tee the ball up on the surface. The pressurized suits severely restricted movement, and due to their helmet’s visors, they struggled to even see their feet.
What is the USGA?
The USGA promotes and conserves the true spirit of the game of golf as embodied in its ancient and honorable traditions. It acts in the best interests of the game for the continued enjoyment of those who love and play it. The USGA: Celebrating 125 Years. GIVING.
Who hit the first golf ball on the moon?
That distinction belongs to a NASA astronaut. Apollo 14 commander Alan B. Shepard hit two golf balls on the surface of the Moon on Feb. 6, 1971. Shepard talked to the United States Golf Association (USGA) about those infamous shots. “I shanked the first one; it rolled into a crater about 40 yards way,” said Shepard.
Who tricked NASA?
Moon golf: How Astronaut Alan Shepard tricked NASA. The ingenious journey that Astronaut Alan Shepard had to take to sneak a golf club and golf balls into space and onto the moon. When you think of golf, legendary players like Jack Nicklaus, Arnold Palmer, Tiger Woods and Bobby Jones may come to mind. None of those legends, however, hit arguably ...
Did the astronauts take golf clubs on Apollo 13?
Maggie Lagle, a historian for the USGA, told Fox News that NASA did not have a sense of humor after Apollo 13 and would not have let Shepard take a golf club on the mission, so Shepard snuck a club and balls into space with him.
Who was Jack Harden?
According to Lagle, the only two men who knew about the club were Shepard and Jack Harden, a golf pro at River Oaks Country Club in Houston. Harden helped Shepard modify a standard 6-iron head of a Wilson golf club.
Did Bing Crosby donate his club to the USGA?
Singer Bing Crosby helped convince Shepard to donate his club to the USGA’s museum in New Jersey. “Alan was a very avid golfer and he would actually participate in the Bing Crosby golf tournament,” said Lagle.
Who was the golfer on the moon?
But Admiral Alan B. Shepard Jr. has them all beat … by a mile. During the Apollo 14 mission to the moon, Shepard tucked a specially-crafted club and two golf balls into his space suit. His “shot heard around the galaxy” on Feb. 6, 1971 is arguably the most famous in golf’s history. Here are three things to know about “The Moon Club,” which is on ...
Why did Bob Hope visit NASA?
In 1970, Bob Hope visited NASA headquarters in Houston to prepare for a television special that would involve the Apollo astronauts. As part of the day, he was strapped into a training device that simulated the one-sixth gravity encountered while walking on the moon.
Who was the golfer that used golf to ride the moon?
The idea to use golf as the visual hit Shepard when famed comedian Bob Hope visited NASA prior to the mission. During the tour led by Shepard, Hope carried around an old driver and eventually used it for balance when he entered the moonwalker, simulating conditions on the moon.
How much does the moon club weigh?
The Moon Club, a specially crafted 6-iron clubhead, weighing 16.5 ounces, that was carried by Alan Shepard onboard the Apollo 14 mission to the moon as seen at the USGA Headquarters in Far Hills, NJ. (USGA/John Mummert)
What was the first golf shot on the moon?
The first golf shot on the moon came to life, rolling into a crater about 40 yards away. He had the hang of it now. Shepard dropped a second ball and swung again. Keeping his head down as much as he could, he made contact a second time.
Where is the moon club?
While Shepard died in 1998 at the age of 74, his legacy lives on in the USGA Golf Museum and Library in Liberty Corner, New Jersey, where the moon club and the sock that contained the two golf balls brought to the moon are two of the museum’s most popular items alongside Bobby Jones’ famous Calamity Jane putter.
When was the second Apollo 14 mission?
kept his plan quiet. The mission came first. Apollo 14, Shepard’s second space flight as commander, was planned for Jan. 31 to Feb. 9, 1971. Two years after humans first landed on the moon, Shepard wouldn’t be the first astronaut in space or the first person to walk on the moon on this trip, ...
Who carried the moon club?
The Moon Club, a specially crafted 6-iron clubhead carried by Alan Shepard onboard the Apollo 14 mission to the moon as seen on August 30, 2007 at the USGA Headquarters in Far Hills, NJ. (USGA/John Mummert) “Miles and miles and miles,” Shepard said as he watched it sail. “Very good, Al,” Haise said. It wasn’t really miles.
Who was the first person to hit a golf ball on the moon?
A lover of golf who spent the later years of his life near Pebble Beach, California, Shepard brought two golf balls folded in a sock and a unique 6-iron of his own engineering to space 50 years ago, hoping to become the first person to hit a golf ball on the moon. USGA senior historian Victoria Nenno recounts the idea came to Shepard as he was ...
How far did the ball go on the moon?
But in the Moon's airless environment with just one-sixth the gravity of Earth, Shepard later estimated that his modest pitch shot carried the ball about 200 yards (600 feet).
What is the most famous golf swing ever taken?
In the annals of golf history, Alan Shepard's shots from the lunar sand may be the most famous swings ever taken. And after 50 years, image analysts have finally determined how far his golf balls went.
Why did Hope golf on the moon?
Hope took his golf club everywhere, according to the USGA, and Shepard was inspired to do a quick golf session on the moon to demonstrate the moon's gravitational pull, which is one-sixth that of Earth, according to NASA. Shepard, the commander of Apollo 14 and a long-time NASA astronaut, used his connections to discreetly ask for help keeping ...
Who was the only person to hit a golf ball on the moon?
Decades after the historic golf excursion, Shepard still had pride in the accomplishment. "So far I'm the only person to have hit a golf ball on the moon. Probably will be for some time," he told NASA in the February 1998 oral history, a few months before his death at age 74.
How far can a male golfer drive?
By comparison, a 2019 report using golf tournaments' gender categories shows that an average amateur male golfer on Earth can drive the ball 216 yards (198 m), and an average female golfer 148 yards (135 m), although those distances have increased significantly since Shepard's flight.
Who said there was no way to go to the moon?
Shepard, however, explained the golf club's construction to Gilruth and then made the director a promise. Apollo 14 astronauts Edgar Mitchell and Alan Shepard practice deploying equipment before their trip to the moon.
When did Bob Hope get the idea for the moonshot?
Click here for more Space.com videos... Sorry, the video player failed to load. (Error Code: 100013) Shepard got the idea for his golf moonshot in 1970, when famed golfer Bob Hope visited NASA's Manned Spacecraft Center (MSC, now Johnson Space Center) in Houston, the training hub for astronauts, for a television special.
Who was the commander of Apollo 14?
Shepard, the commander of Apollo 14 and a long-time NASA astronaut, used his connections to discreetly ask for help keeping the plan a surprise. Jack Harden, the pro at River Oaks Country Club in Houston, made the clubhead.
Did Apollo 14 play golf on the moon?
50 years ago, an Apollo 14 astronaut played golf on the moon. Here's the inside story. A still from video footage shows NASA astronaut Alan Shepard preparing to hit a golf ball on the moon. By this point in the moonwalk, the astronauts had already put away the still-photograph cameras. (Image credit: NASA)