Back in March 1457, golf was officially banned in Scotland.
Why?
In the 15th century, golf was seen as something unofficial. Almost subversive. Anti-establishment.
The authorities hated it so much that the Scottish Parliament banned it three separate times: 1457, 1471, and 1491. Football got banned too, by the way.
Apparently, people didn’t give a damn. They loved the game so much that they were willing to get into trouble…
Just to keep playing.
At the time, Scotland was busy fighting wars against the English. A proper man was supposed to spend his days practicing archery.
You know… shooting arrows. At the English.
Turns out many were arriving late to archery practice because they’d gone golfing first. You could get fined, publicly shamed as a “bad Scot,” and even forced to buy drinks for the guys who had shown up to practice with their bows.
Second reason: the Church didn’t like golf either. People were skipping Sunday Mass to go play. In Perth, in 1599, records show that four men confessed and asked forgiveness for playing golf at North Inch during the Sunday afternoon sermon.
The funny part?
The same craftsmen selling you bows were also making golf clubs. And even the kings themselves were completely hooked on golf.
In 1502, Scotland and England finally signed the Treaty of Perpetual Peace — peace through the marriage of James IV and Margaret Tudor.
And here’s the twist: James IV — the same king behind the 1491 golf ban — stopped persecuting the game… and started buying clubs to play it himself.
Moral of the story: Human beings are not made for war. No matter how hard some people try to convince you otherwise.
Deep down, naturally — even in secret, even under prohibition…
Humans just want to play golf.
That’s their destiny. To hell with wars.
Have a great weekend, golfer!
P.S. If you ever have questions about handicaps, try this out and tell me what you think.