TheHistoryOf.net

Golf is truly one of the great sports of the world, being played in almost every country to a greater or lesser extent, and being enthusiastically followed by millions more on television who have never themselves teed off or sunk a putt, but still can appreciate and love the game from the comfort of their armchair (feeling especially smug when the weather is not at its finest for the players).

But where did it all begin? And how did the simple idea of hitting a small ball into a hole with a misshapen stick capture such a following?

In the 1800s, when people would run up debt and couldn’t pay, there was no such thing as a charge-off or protective bankruptcy. People who owed money would go to debtors’ prisons. Men would move into the prisons with their families and all of their possessions. A lot of the men were prosperous in their past lives (often beyond their means, which put them in a debtors’ prison in the first place), and they had tennis racquets (racket is also an acceptable spelling) with them. They started playing ball with their racquets against the prison walls.

Most people think snowboarding is a very new concept, first invented in the last couple of decades. Surprisingly enough, the first snowboards can be traced back to the 1920s! Men and older boys would take plywood or boards from the sides of barrels tied together with clothesline as their base. They would then use horse reins or some more clothesline to try to keep their feet tied into place on the boards. These brave ones then slid down snow-covered hills standing up on boards that would make up the first stories of the history of snowboarding 80 years later.

It’s confusing. If you find yourself at an international airport and tell someone that you love football, they might think you mean soccer, which the rest of the world calls football. It may be necessary to specifically say American or Canadian football (also a little bit different from each other) to come to any type of understanding. How can three different games be called the same thing? They are all related. The history of football has its roots in rugby and soccer.

Right after the national anthem ends, the national pastime begins. Americans love all things baseball. Most men own at least a few baseball caps and collector cards. More than 350,000 people each year make the pilgrimage to the Baseball Hall of Fame in Cooperstown, New York. Millions of people attend games every year, but few know how it all started. The History of Baseball is interesting, murky, and controversial.

Insert the history of hockey article here.

About The Author

James Martell is a successful freelance writer providing valuable tips and advice for consumers. His numerous articles offer moneysaving tips and valuable insight on typically confusing topics.

This article on the "History of Hockey" reprinted with permission.

Soccer as we know and love it today is the result of over 2000 years of sporting evolution. Though its roots can be traced back to diverse games around the world, the qualities of skill, athleticism, courage and determination have always been celebrated as they are today.