Golf is a separate culture that is enshrines its rich traditions, legends and history. Origin of golf is connected with such legend – a shepherd, walking around seashore, had nothing to do and he hit a round stone with a stick and rolled it in a rabbit form. Then shepherd’s friends, who liked new fun, joined him to play. Later on, rabbit forms were changed to holes, stones to balls and sticks to golf clubs. In contrast to bowling, key of golf is a club. Many countries claim to be homeland of golf. There was very popular game in Holland, named kolven, though they played on ice instead of green field. People in France hit balls with special poles, competing, who made putt the first.

According to Professor Ling Honlin (Lanshou University, China), the Chinese played golf in 10th century A.D. already, it is proved by written sources of those period, where there are description and the rules of the game, called “Chuwan”. Players were equipped with a dozen of clubs, some of them were similar to present models, for example driver and wood. And this is not all, recently, new data were found; according to the data, golf game is much older that it was accepted to think before. Romans deliver golf to England during the invasion that lasted till the 4th century A.D. The game was called “paganike”, and players kicked the small leather ball using bent sticks.

But nevertheless, small Scotch town St. Andrews is considered to be homeland of classic golf. By the way, one can see a person with a club on one of stained-glass windows of the St. Andrew Cathedral. The beginning of official golf history, as the world goes, was the first written record that referred to 1457. King James prohibited golf because his soldiers play it instead of mastering archery.

This prohibition was expressed by act of Scotch parliament. In the middle of XVIII century, King Golf Club was found in St. Andrews; in 1754 the first golf rules were published. In those times, George II was King of Great Britain and Ireland, at the same time golf reached the south of Albion and a field with seven holes was built there. In this way, golf began its triumphal march along Great Britain, and then moved to British colonies.

Familirization with golf is much bigger than just passion for new kind of sports games; it is more like communion with perfectly special culture with rich traditions, aristocratic, many-sided and esthetic.