Records do not clearly state where golf originated. But the widely accepted assumption is that it was first introduced in Scotland during the Middle Ages. Others do believe that golf was known to be invented by Scottish players because the game, named "gowf" was mentioned twice in the Acts of the Scottish Parliament in the 15th century. But this was pertaining to hurling balls closely identified with modern field hockey.

However, in the 17th century, a specific game took place where a small ball is placed in the hole in the ground using golf clubs and was played in Netherlands and not in Scotland. This first golf-like game was recorded to take place in February 26, 1297 in Loenen aan de Vecht. The equipment used by the players that time were one stick and leather ball. The person who is able to hit the ball several times and farther- at least several hundreds of meters away is proclaimed the winner.

It was known that there was golf played in the Old Links at Musselburgh Racecourse in 1672. Record showed that it was probably the oldest golf course that ever existed in the world. But there are other evidences though that Queen Mary of Scotland was understood to be playing the sports in 1567.

There are still much earlier accounts of similar game played in Continental Europe.

The original golf game did not always have eighteen holes. As early as 15th century, St. Andrews golfers developed a trench through uneven terrains. The players played with holes placed in different locations depending on the landscape. The kind of golf course originally created eleven holes only. The holes were laid out from end to end, starting from the clubhouse and stretching to the farthest end of the whole property. The player usually played the holes out. After turning around, they will play the holes in. All in all they were given at least 22 holes.

In 1764, the several holes were considered too short a distance and where later on combined. The 11 holes were then reduced to 9. So when a golfer completes one round of the links, they will have a total of 18 holes instead of 22.

The evolution in golf can be mainly traced on the changes made in the equipment. Changes in the golf ball were the most prominent. There were a lot of modifications until it settled its final form today. The decision to give the standard weight and size was declared by the United States Golf Association in 1930. The initial velocity should not go over 250 feet per second.

The golf clubs today were also a lot more different compared to those used by traditional players. Past clubs were made of wood. Over time Hickory popularized the American Persimmon as the standard choice of wood to make shafts because of its strength and durability. Then iron shafts entered the market to keep up with the constant modification of golf balls. It was in the late 1890's when steel shafts attempted to replace iron made clubs but the governing bodies took some time to adopt it. In 1970's shaft technology shifted to graphite for its weight. Then in 1980, the so called shafts made from metal woods were invented. But the latest golf club machinery finally evolved to graphite shaft with lightweight titanium heads to make them more flexible and stronger like what we see today.