Golf Mats
The very first mention of golf had been noted in a Chinese book from the eleventh century. No reference of any kind was made of an object being similar to that of a present day golf mat. It had been noted that golf was also played in a city by the name of Loenen aan de Vecht. Loenen aan de Vecht is a city situated in the Netherlands. In the year of 1297, the game was played by hitting a leather ball with a stick. Even though there existed a type of golf game, there were no golf mats of any kind.
The English word that is ‘golf’ comes from the Dutch word of ‘kolf’ meaning stick or bat or club. The term golf mat would have been unheard of at that time. However, it is generally considered that the modern game of golf was a game that was invented by the Scottish. In Scotland, at St Andrews in Fife, players of the game of golf set up a regular route through the rolling landscape. The positions of the holes were imposed by the natural features of the rough terrain. No doubt, nowadays, there would be an unrestricted number and use of golf mats at this prestigious golf club.
Even without the added advantage of a golf mat there would have been eleven holes arranged from the early clubhouse of St Andrews. The holes would have stretched to the edge of the club’s grounds. A golf mat would not have taken up too much space. In any event, the correct protocol to follow would have been for the golfer to play the holes out. After that, the player would turn back, and then play all of the eleven holes, over again. This would have made up a total of 22 holes that were played in all. In 1764, the short holes were pooled, and thereafter, a complete round was made up of eighteen holes.
There have been many changes for the better to equipment used in the modern game of golf. A golf mat is indeed a beneficial piece of up-to-date equipment used by golfers today. The nineteenth century brought about an improvement in greens due to the development of better mowers. That century also contributed to superior quality golf balls by the advancement in manmade materials and rubber. Manmade materials eventually created a practice product such as a golf mat.
In 1930, before golf mats, there was the invention of the wooden golf tee as well as the presentation of the metal shaft. Metal began to take the place of wood heads in the 1970’s. During the 1980’s shafts made of graphite composite materials were instituted. By now, the game of golf was unstoppable in popularity and any piece of equipment that could improve play, such as a golf mat, had an enthusiastic following. An outcome of modern golf equipment is that nowadays, players are able to hit the golf ball a great deal further than before. The use of golf mats for practice has proved over and over that players improve more quickly.
