Did You Know the 7 Fun Facts About Golf?
A little golf history and trivia from JPGA
A few weeks ago, one of our junior players asked me if golf had always used dimpled balls, or if that was just something companies dreamed up for marketing. Good question, and it got me thinking about how much golf history most players never actually hear about. So I dug up a handful of my favorite facts, the kind of stuff I like sharing with our students between lessons.
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1. The Longest Drive on Record Is Nearly 3x a Football Field
In 1974, during a long drive competition at the National Seniors Open in Las Vegas, Mike Austin, then 64 years old, hit a drive measured at 515 yards. The shot had some help from a dry lakebed, a tailwind, and a slight downhill slope, but it’s still one of the most talked-about feats in golf history and remains the longest drive ever officially recorded.
I bring this one up with my students often, not because we’re chasing 500-yard drives, but because
it’s a good reminder that technique and timing beat raw strength.
2. Golf Balls Weren't Always Round and Dimpled
Long before modern golf balls, players used “featheries,” leather pouches tightly packed with boiled goose or chicken feathers, then hand-stitched and painted. They were expensive and slow to make, and even a skilled ball maker could only turn out a few a day. Featheries eventually gave way, in the mid-1800s, to gutta-percha balls made from the dried sap of a Malaysian tree. These were cheaper and tougher, and a happy accident, players noticed scuffed, dimpled balls flew farther and straighter than smooth ones, led directly to the dimpled design we still use today.
3. Golf Has Been Played on the Moon
On February 6, 1971, Apollo 14 astronaut Alan Shepard became the first person to hit a golf ball on the moon. Stuck in a bulky spacesuit that limited him to a one-handed swing, he used a makeshift six-iron head attached to a lunar sample collection tool. His first two swings missed the ball entirely, but the third connected, and thanks to the moon’s low gravity and lack of atmosphere, that ball reportedly sailed an impressive distance for such an awkward swing.
Still one of my favorite facts in all of sports, not just golf.
4. The Oldest Golf Course Still in Use Dates to the 1400s
St Andrews Links in Scotland is widely regarded as the “Home of Golf.” The Old Course there has been played continuously since at least the early 1400s, making it one of the oldest sporting venues still in active use anywhere in the world. Golf itself is believed to have started in Scotland even earlier, possibly evolving from a stick-and-ball game played by shepherds.
It’s on my personal bucket list, and I tell our older students to add it to theirs too.
5. A Hole in One Is Rarer Than You'd Think
The odds of an amateur golfer making a hole in one on a given par 3 are often estimated around 1 in 12,500, while tour pros, with far more precision and repetition, see odds closer to 1 in 2,500. That rarity is part of why hole-in-one insurance exists: plenty of tournaments and charity events actually buy a policy in case someone aces a hole and wins a big prize, like a car.
I’ve watched a handful of aces over my coaching career, and it’s the same reaction every time: pure
disbelief, then pure joy.
6. The Rules of Golf Fit in a Book Thicker Than You'd Guess
Golf gets a lot of credit for being a game of honor and self-officiating, but its official rulebook, maintained jointly by the R&A and the USGA, has grown over the decades to cover everything from unplayable lies to what counts as loss of stroke and distance. A major rewrite in 2019 tried to simplify and modernize things, trimming some of the more obscure penalties that had confused players for generations.
We spend real time on rules with our students, because knowing them well is its own competitive
edge.
7. Golf Is a Legitimate Calorie-Burning Workout
Walking an 18-hole course, instead of riding in a cart, typically covers four to six miles and can burn several hundred calories depending on body weight and pace. Add in the rotational swing, which works the core, hips, and shoulders, and it’s easy to see why fitness pros often recommend walking rounds as a form of low-impact cardio.
It’s one more reason I tell parents golf is such a great sport for young athletes, on top of everything it
teaches about focus and patience.
Golf’s history is full of surprising details like these, and honestly, that’s part of why I still love this game after all these years of coaching. Every young player who walks onto our practice range is stepping into a sport with centuries of stories behind it.
Ready to Start Their Own Golf Story?
If your junior golfer is ready to start building their own game, I’d love to have them join us at Junior Players Golf Academy (JPGA). We help young athletes develop the fundamentals, mental game, and competitive experience to take their game to the next level. Explore our academy programs and golf camps in Hilton Head Island, SC and Orlando, FL → JRPGA.com
Frequently Asked Questions
A few more things players and parents ask me
Is it true golf balls used to be made from feathers?
Yep. Before rubber and synthetic materials took over, “featheries” were hand-stitched leather pouches stuffed with boiled feathers. They were pricey to make and fell apart in wet conditions, which is a big reason the sport moved on to gutta-percha and eventually rubber-core balls.
Has anyone actually broken Mike Austin's 515-yard drive record?
Not officially. Long drive competitions today are measured under stricter, more standardized
conditions than Austin’s 1974 shot, so while some competitors have come close, his drive is still the
one most golf historians point to.
How often should a junior golfer practice to see real improvement?
Two to three focused sessions a week tends to build steady progress without burning a young
player out, especially when it’s paired with course time on weekends.
What's the best way to keep a junior golfer motivated during a slump?
Shift the focus from scores to specific skills, like short game or course management, for a few weeks. It usually helps a young player rebuild confidence without the pressure of a scorecard.
Can golf help with things beyond the sport itself, like focus or discipline?
Definitely. Golf is one of the few sports where a player is entirely accountable for their own
decisions and mistakes, and that tends to build focus, patience, and self-discipline that carries over
into school and everywhere else.
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