Welcome to GolfWhole.com your best link to the "links." This website is devoted exclusively to the wonderful game of golf and all aspects of the golfing experience. By meticulously combing the Internet, we uncovered thousands of articles, discovered countless tips and pieces of advice and found a wealth of information and resources pertaining to the golfing world. From the best equipment to the most affordable green fees, this site has it all!

Golf, as we know it today, originated from a game played on the eastern coast of Scotland during the 15th century. Players would hit a pebble around a natural course of sand dunes and rabbit trails using a stick or a primitive club.

Some historians believe that the games of Kolven from Holland and Chole from Belgium influenced the game. The latter being introduced into Scotland in 1421. However, while these are stick and ball games, they are missing that vital ingredient that is unique to golf--the hole. Whatever the argument, there is no dispute that Scotland gave birth to the game we know today as golf.

The status and popularity of golf spread quickly throughout the 16th century due to it's royal endorsement. King Charles I brought the game to England and Mary Queen of Scots, who was French, introduced the game to France while she studied there. In fact, the term "caddie" stems from the name given to her helpers who were cadets in the French military.

The Gentlemen Golfers of Leith (near Edinburgh) was the first club (formed in 1744) to promote an annual competition and to draft the club's rules. The first reference to golf at the historic town of St. Andrews was in 1552. The now famous clubhouse was erected there in 1854 and the Royal and Ancient Golf Club of St Andrews became the premier golf club because of it's fine course, the publication of rules, and it's promotion of the game as a proper sport.

By this time, golfers were using proper clubs and balls. Club heads were made from beech wood and some heads were made from hand-forged iron. Shafts were usually ash or hazel wood. Balls were made from tightly packed feathers wrapped in a stitched horse-hide sphere.

As modern technology advanced so did golfing equipment. Once metal club heads and shafts, along with gutta percha balls, began rolling off the production line, the average person was able to afford to play golf. The dawn of the 20th century brought remarkable change to the game. The one-piece, rubber-cored ball (1900), grooved-faced irons (1902), the first dimpled golf ball (1905), and steel-shafted clubs (1910) all appeared in the first decade of the 20th century.

Within a short ten year span, golfers could hit further and with more accuracy than ever before--using equipment which was mass produced rather inexpensively. Golf experienced a tremendous growth of popularity, which continues to this day.

Whether you are a beginning golfer, an experienced "duffer," or a touring pro this site has something for you. You can find tips, equipment, lessons, courses, tour information, magazines, accessories, clothing and everything dealing with golf at this all-inclusive site.

Please take a few minutes, browse our site, take a "mulligan" and let the play begin!