Before we start discussing the golf irons history let us have a look at the origin of the sport and the evolution of the golf club equipment in general. According to the historical evidence, a golf like game was played in Netherlands on 26 February 1297. But the present form of golf was started in Scotland during 1400s and from that time the golf clubs are being made. At that time anyone can design a golf club according to his imagination as there was no set standard and specification for making the golf clubs. As there was only one material that was available for making the club was wood. All clubs made at that time were wooden. In 1500s King James the IV first ordered to make a golf club set and William Mayne was appointed as the Royal golf club maker.
The golf irons history can be traced back to 1800s when the golf iron was first produced and since then this specific golf club have gone through many changes. At the early years the golf irons was used carefully. The design of the irons got a huge transformation when the design was technologically equipped during the time of the industrial revolution. During the 1870s golf irons were manufactured by the blacksmiths. During this time the golf irons used to be heavy and unsophisticated in design. The irons were not smooth and had uneven edges that were nothing like irons that we see these days. It is during 1900s when drop forging was available and was used to make golf clubs making the irons lighter in weight. Since then, much better irons were produced for mass use.
As the popularity of the game increased during 1910, it greatly influenced the designing and production of better quality golf club irons. Till the 1930 the golf iron has gone through many changes in terms of design. It is during this time that many inventions came into being for designing the golf irons. The hollow faced irons or the concave golf irons were invented during this time. Some of the iron designs that were invented during this period were banned but there are some designs that are still being used and produced by the golf club makers. During this period another important change came into golf iron design. That is transformation from the smooth golf iron face to the grooves. This change came as the players and the makers of the golf irons realized that the grooves can produce more backspin and better distance. In fact this was a natural transformation as the solid golf balls came into use during this time.
In 1920s a significant change came in terms of naming the irons. Instead of the cleeks, mid-irons and jiggers the number system was introduced to distinguish the golf irons. Basically this numbering system originated in America and this is being followed all over the world even today. It is during 1930s that steel shafts were introduced in America and since then it is the predominant material for making the irons but lately the graphite iron shafts are also being used.
