Who invented the first golf ball?
Golf’s first professional, Allan Robertson, was considered the premier ball and club maker of his time, in the early 1800s. In 1835, at age 14, Tom Morris (later known as Old Tom Morris & the Grandfather of Golf) began working under Robertson at St. Andrews. The two worked together making featherie golf balls until the advent of the guttie ball.
Why did Tom Morris start making golf balls?
In 1835, at age 14, Tom Morris (later known as Old Tom Morris & the Grandfather of Golf) began working under Robertson at St. Andrews. The two worked together making featherie golf balls until the advent of the guttie ball. Robertson didn’t like the guttie and saw it as a threat to his business.
When were golf balls made in Scotland?
In 1618, James VI/I granted a 21 year patent to James Melville and William Berwick to make golf balls in Scotland, as the cost of imported balls was becoming exorbitant, but this licence was later successfully challenged and became un-enforceable.
When did the Scottish links get its own golf ball?
It came into its own on the Scottish Links. Leather stitched golf balls were been being made in Scotland from at least 1554, when there was a recorded dispute between the cordiners (leather workers) of the Cannongate in Edinburgh and the 'cordiners and gouff ball makers of North Leith' .
Who invented the Featherie golf ball?
In 1835, at age 14, Tom Morris (later known as Old Tom Morris & the Grandfather of Golf) began working under Robertson at St. Andrews. The two worked together making featherie golf balls until the advent of the guttie ball.
What golf balls do lady pros use?
The top 50 LPGA Tour players use 5 different golf balls made by 4 manufacturers. 41 of this group use a Titleist Pro V1 or Pro V1x with the Pro V1x the most popular choice of 22 players. Srixon's Z-Star is used by 5 players while 2 players each use Bridgestone's Tour B X and Callaway Chrome Soft X golf balls.
Who designed the vice golf ball?
Simply put Vice is a company started by two surfing lawyers, Ingo Duellmann and Rainer Stoeckl, in 2012 in Germany where the company still designs and manufactures Vice golf balls.
Is there a difference in Lady golf balls?
Is a there a difference between men's and ladies' golf balls? Yes. When the ball is struck by a club travelling at a slower speed you get a lower flight with little spin. Women-specific balls are made with soft cores that compress more under low pressure, increasing ball speed, lift, carry and therefore distance.
Do Lady golf balls go further?
Women's balls are designed to go further than men's balls, and they indeed might if a woman has a high enough swing speed. Women's balls do maximize distance.
What is the best ladies golf ball for distance?
We believe that the best golf ball for women is the Callaway Golf Supersoft ball for its all-around performance generated from a 2-piece construction and ultra-low compression rating. This allows women with slow swing speed to get ample distance from the tee.
What golf ball is closest to Pro V1?
Bridgestone Tour B XSWhat Golf Balls Are Similar To Pro V1? There are several golf balls on the market that compete with Pro V1, such as Callaway Chrome Soft and Taylormade TP5. The ball that most closely resembles the Pro V1 is the Bridgestone Tour B XS.
What is the number one golf ball on tour?
Titleist likes to remind us that that the Pro V1 is the No 1 ball used by professionals on worldwide golf tours, but that it's a great ball for non-superstars as well. The ball is manufactured to perfectly balance short game control without sacrificing good yardage from the tee.
Which vice ball spins the most?
Carrying 250.2 yds (compared to 251.1 Pro V1X), the Vice PRO PLUS has a greater total distance thanks to its driver spin of 2526 rpm compared to 2586 rpm with the ProV1X.
Can men play Lady golf balls?
Most golf clubs, of course, are made to be gender neutral, and many LPGA Tour players use the same clubheads that you'd find out on the PGA Tour. The differences between LPGA and PGA Tour club setups are mostly found in the shaft.
Can a man play with womens golf balls?
if it's on the list of conforming balls it's legal.
What is the compression of the Bridgestone Lady golf ball?
44It's arguably odd that Bridgestone would be so willing to discuss its two new balls – the e6 and e6 Lady – that, at 44 and 40 compression respectively, are among the softest the company has ever produced.
Who made featherie golf balls?
With Tom Morris as his apprentice, Allan Robertson made 1,021 featherie golf balls in 1840, 1,392 in 1841 and 2,456 in 1844. The work was hard, as shown recently by a review of autopsy reports of golf ball makers. Allan Robertson died at 44. Many of the Gourlay golf ball-makers at Bruntsfield also died young.
What was the first ball used in golf?
There are theories that wooden balls may have been used in a target version of golf in Scotland, but this is not golf proper and it is more likely than not that the ‘hairy’ colf ball was the first ball used for golf on the links in Scotland.
What is the most famous golf ball?
The feathery or featherie is the most famous of all golf balls, though it is not definitively known when or where it was developed. There is a reference in the Edinburgh Testaments (vol xlvii 123b) to 'fyve scoir twell flok goiff ballis' (112 flok golf balls) in a will in 1612.
When were gutties invented?
However, by 1860, gutties were good enough and popular enough to replace the feathery and a new era of golf was born. In 1871, Willie Dunn at Musselburgh created a mould to make gutties, which was a quicker and more consistent method of production.
What are the four types of golf balls?
In the first four hundred years of golf there were only four types of golf ball - the Hairy, the Feathery, the Gutty and the Haskell. Everyone refers to golf as a ‘stick and ball’ game, and this has over-emphasized the role of the clubs, ...
How far did John Gibson drive?
In 1786, a controlled test in Glasgow recorded an average distance of 193 yards and 1 foot from 5 drives by John Gibson, ranging from 182 to 201 yards. The ‘official’ feathery record was set in 1836 at 361 yards by Samuel Messieux from Hole O’Cross green into Hell Bunker at St Andrews, wind assisted.
Where did feathery ball originate?
The first reference to a feathery is in the Netherlands in a poem in 1657, as a pennebal, in connection with a Scottish 'cleek', so it is possible that the ball was developed in Scotland and the concept re-exported to the Netherlands.
Who sold Nicklaus golf balls?
For a dozen years, the company sold Nicklaus golf balls in bulk to Firestone Tire for it to use in a variety of promotions. MacGregor ran its own contests as well, giving consumers and club pros the chance to win new cars or trips to the Masters. It provided handsome bonuses for its salesmen.
Who tested MacGregor golf balls?
Perhaps the most damning evidence of the MacGregor golf ball’s inferiority comes from Frank Thomas, who for 26 years directed testing of all golf balls used in competition as the USGA’s technical director.
What happened when Nicklaus hit one of Shaw's titleist balls?
When Nicklaus hit one of Shaw’s Titleist balls, he regained his edge. Nicklaus, according to Wullkotte, threatened: “If you don’t have a better ball for me to play by the Masters I’m going to play the Titleist.”. The MacGregor R&D team hopped on the task and reconfigured the ball ahead of Nicklaus’ deadline.
What was Hogan's driving machine called?
Hogan wasn’t easily swayed. He cooperated and observed a variety of tests. A mechanical driving machine called “Iron Byron” blasted shots with the top-of-the-line MacGregor Tourney as well as Hogan’s preferred Titleist model.
Did Nicklaus tell him he was surprised by the 77?
At the 2000 U.S. Open at Pebble Beach, following Thomas’ retirement, he revealed to Nicklaus the startling results of the ’77 test. Nicklaus told him he wasn’t surprised. “He knew it wasn’t a very good golf ball,” Thomas said. “It just shows how good he really was.
Did Ben Hogan use golf balls?
Ben Hogan just flat-out refused to use it. Unlike MacGregor’s beloved woods and irons, its golf ball was an object of contempt. MacGregor began selling a golf ball under its name, but produced by a third-party prior to World War II.
Who won the 1952 Vardon Trophy?
Improvements were made. Fellow MacGregor staff pro Jack Burke Jr. won the 1952 Vardon Trophy with the ball. “It went in the hole just fine for me,” Burke Jr. said recently. So with a residue of hope, company officials tried yet again to switch Hogan into their ball.
