The History of Women Playing Golf

Most sports have been the domain of men for the length of their history, which unfortunately has limited the participation of women who want to play. The history of golf actually has had significant contributions from women over the centuries, from queens to actresses who enjoyed the game. Here are just a few facts about women’s participation in the game of golf.

Bruntsfield Links

While there were rumors that famous queens and princesses had played golf during its early days, including Mary, Queen of Scots, these stories are not certain. The first solid evidence of women playing golf is at the historic Bruntsfield Links course in Edinburgh, Scotland, in 1738.

In 1795, the fishwomen of Fisherrow in Musselburgh were reported to have played golf, and there was even a sponsored prize for a New Year’s Day women’s golf competition in 1811.

Ladies’ Golf Union & LPGA

During the 19th century, women who played golf created a variety of clubs throughout the United Kingdom, but it wasn’t until April of 1893 that the British Ladies’ Golf Union was founded; surprisingly, this was a year before the American men’s golf association was founded. One of the strides that the LGU made was to develop a uniform way to rate courses, which resulted in the creation of the first handicap system in golf that would later be used by all players.

Later on, the American Ladies’ Professional Golf Association was founded in 1950 as a way of organizing professional women golf players.

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