The game of golf has evolved along with the development of equipment. In the old days, golf clubs were much longer and flatter in design. The players covered the shaft with their palms and rotated flat around the body, striking mainly through the upper shoulder girdle. For centuries, club making has been a high art. We know that in 1603 only William Maine, a bowmaker by trade, was appointed to make golf clubs for James VI of Scotland - James I of England.

At that time, club shafts were made of ash or walnut with a head of thorn, beech, apple or fushi. The angle was flatter and the heads were much longer than today's golf clubs - about 2.5 cm front to back and 5-7.5 cm long.

Most of the clubs were wooden, with nifty names such as game stick, gold stick, grass driver, long spoon, short spoon, and bather, reflecting the player's close personal relationship with the club. On the other hand, the irons were designed for strikes from particularly difficult positions - hence we have the iron for the bunker, iron gauge, country iron, etc.

Over time, irons began to be used not only for returning the ball from uncomfortable positions to ifu, but also for general approximation. By the end of the 19th century, new types were developed for longer strokes - for example, medium iron, "click", "niblick", etc.

Beginning in 1948, the use of the gutti ball instead of the old-fashioned feather ball led to a further change in the game. Players have found definite advantages to using hickory as a wood for rods. This tree was more rigid than ash or walnut, allowing players to swing in more upright stances.

The design of the golf clubs has also changed: now the shaft is inserted into the hole in the club head instead of the previous butt joint method.

The introduction of the rubber ball at the end of the 19th century further changed the game. This ball required harder types of wood for a longer life, so persimmon wood was used. After a best hybrid golf clubs for high handicappers while, to give more strength, inserts from bone, ivory, and later - from plastic began to be used. Subsequently, the lack of good persimmons led to experiments with multilayer wood.

The traditional method of club making is still, although many would disagree, still the best. An old set, handcrafted by artisans, has a high value if it is in good condition. All adjustments were made by eye, and the center of gravity was placed at the edge of the work surface.

Persimmon is still the most valuable tree for professionals. However, for most players, multi-layered wood and modern metal wood - with their long lifespan and longer range - are optimal choices. For many years, hickory has been used for the rod. Due to the shortage of this type of wood after the First World War, club makers turned to metal rods. Currently, steel is gradually giving way to graphite, boron, titanium and other materials. More flexible rods help to achieve greater spacing, while rods with higher stiffness result in more precision.

The early irons (right) are flatter than their modern counterparts. Initially, irons were only used for particularly difficult or uncomfortable strikes.

Old set of persimmon woods (far right). The heads are solid, not made with inserts as they are today.

Certainly, the pioneers of golf would be skeptical of the modern grooved ball. However, just as the courses, clubs and rules of golf have improved over the years, the ball has changed beyond recognition in the game.

As ifa developed, three main types of balls were distinguished - the feather ball, the gutta-percha ball, and the rubber-coated ball, which is accepted today. The last two types were introduced over the past 150 years, and the feather ball was used non-stop for nearly 400 years until the mid-19th century.

The feather ball dominated the game for so long not so much because of some of its specific merits, but rather because there was no other reasonable alternative. This ball consisted of a spherical outer cover filled with more feathers, which were boiled in order to become softer and more compact. The traditional number of feathers was used, which was a "full cylinder", that is, about two liters. The hole through which the feathers went into the ball was sewn up, after which the ball was shaped like a ball. This process was very long and expensive, as even an experienced craftsman could make no more than three or four balls a day.