Why does a standard round of golf consist of 18 holes, and why can players carry no more than 14 clubs? The answers reveal two different influences on golf’s development: the gradual adoption of a convention established at St Andrews in 1764, and a deliberate attempt to regulate equipment in the 1930s.
How 18 Holes Became the Standard
Early golf courses had no standard number of holes. At various times, Leith Links had five, Musselburgh seven and Prestwick twelve. Their layouts reflected the land available and local playing traditions.
At St Andrews, the Old Course originally had 12 physical holes. Ten were played twice, once going out and again returning, giving a round of 22 holes.
On 4 October 1764, the golfers of St Andrews resolved to combine the first four short holes into two. As these holes were played on both the outward and return legs, the change reduced the round from 22 holes to 18.
The decision was intended to improve the course, not to establish a universal standard. The resulting 18-hole round still used only ten physical holes, eight of which were played twice.
From an 18-Hole Round to an 18-Hole Course
As golf became more popular, players going outwards and returning towards the clubhouse increasingly shared greens, sometimes playing towards the same hole. Separate holes on the shared greens helped resolve the problem.
The practice developed gradually. A plan from 1836 shows two holes on one green, and further changes followed in 1855. In 1856–57, Allan Robertson undertook substantial work on the greens, probably enlarging them to accommodate two holes in simultaneous use.
By May 1857, St Andrews offered 18 distinct holes of play, although several continued to share large putting surfaces. White flags identified outward holes and red flags the returning holes. The Fifeshire Journal welcomed the arrangement, reporting that it reduced confusion and delays.
According to Scottish Golf History, the Royal and Ancient Golf Club’s 1842 rules already recognised an 18-hole round, with similar wording appearing in 1858. Other clubs, however, continued to follow their own conventions.
How Other Courses Adopted 18 Holes
The spread of the 18-hole course took decades rather than years.
Research published by Scottish Golf History identifies several important milestones:
| Year | Course | Development |
|---|---|---|
| 1857 | St Andrews | Established 18 distinct holes of play. |
| 1868 | Leven and Lundin | Established an 18-hole course with separate fairways and greens. |
| 1869 | Royston | Earliest documented 18-hole course outside Scotland, according to Scottish Golf History. |
| 1871 | Hoylake, Wimbledon Common and Forfar | All adopted 18 holes. |
| 1882–83 | Prestwick | Expanded from 12 to 18 holes. |
| 1891–92 | Muirfield | Opened with 16 holes in 1891, extending to 18 for the 1892 Open. |
The Leven and Lundin layout was particularly significant because it had 18 separate fairways and greens, making it recognisably similar to a modern course.
Why Did Other Clubs Follow?
The influence of St Andrews extended well beyond its own links. Scottish Golf History suggests that an important factor was the overlapping membership of prominent golfers who belonged both to the Royal and Ancient Golf Club and to other clubs. These golfers favoured consistent rules and playing arrangements, helping to spread the preference for 18 holes.
The Open Championship provides an illustration of how gradually that preference took hold. The first Open was held at Prestwick in 1860, when competitors played three circuits of its 12-hole course. From 1872, the championship rotated between Prestwick, St Andrews and Musselburgh. Each hosted a 36-hole competition, but the number of circuits differed:
- Prestwick: three circuits of 12 holes.
- St Andrews: two circuits of 18 holes.
- Musselburgh: four circuits of nine holes.
Prestwick had already begun staging 18-hole medal competitions by playing some holes twice. Its subsequent expansion to 18 separate holes in 1882–83 brought it into line with the Old Course, and the enlarged course hosted its first Open in 1884. The Honourable Company of Edinburgh Golfers also moved towards the 18-hole format when it relocated from Musselburgh to Muirfield. The new layout opened with 16 holes in 1891 but was extended to 18 for the following year’s Open Championship.
By the 1890s, 18 holes had become the preferred arrangement among the game’s leading clubs, although nine-hole courses remained common. According to Scottish Golf History, approximately half of Britain’s golf courses still had nine holes in 1919. The same source notes that an 18-hole stipulated round was not formally specified in the Rules of Golf until 1950.
What About the Whisky Story?
A popular golfing legend claims that a bottle of Scotch whisky contains 18 shots, explaining why a round consists of 18 holes. It is an entertaining anecdote, but there is no credible historical evidence to support it.
Why Are Golfers Limited to 14 Clubs?
Unlike the 18-hole convention, the 14-club limit was introduced deliberately. Until the 1930s, golfers could carry as many clubs as they wished. Improvements in club design, particularly the adoption of steel shafts during the 1920s, contributed to the development of increasingly specialised sets.
Steel shafts offered greater consistency but changed the feel and playing characteristics of clubs. Some accomplished players believed they had less freedom to shape shots than with traditional hickory shafts. Carrying additional clubs for particular distances and trajectories offered one solution. The American amateur champion Lawson Little was known to carry as many as 25 clubs. According to the United States Golf Association (USGA), some golfers carried 30 or more.
Why Introduce a Limit?
The governing bodies became concerned about the increasing number of specialised clubs. Their principal objective was to preserve shotmaking: the ability to produce different distances, trajectories and shapes by adjusting how a club was played, rather than selecting a specialised club for every situation. Other considerations included reducing the physical burden on caddies, avoiding delays caused by excessive club selection, and limiting the advantage enjoyed by golfers who could afford particularly extensive collections.
The USGA announced its decision in late 1936, with the 14-club limit taking effect on 1 January 1938. The Royal and Ancient Golf Club initially took a different position but subsequently adopted the same restriction, effective in May 1939.
Why Exactly 14?
The precise choice of 14 is less clearly documented. One explanation sometimes offered is that a conventional set consisted of four woods, nine irons and a putter. That produces 14 clubs, but there is insufficient historical evidence to establish it as the reason the governing bodies selected that number.
We know why they wanted a limit. We cannot say with equal confidence why they settled on precisely 14. The restriction survives in today’s Rules of Golf. Rule 4.1b permits players to carry fewer than 14 clubs and, subject to certain conditions, add clubs during a round until they reach the maximum.
Tradition and Regulation
The two conventions illustrate different influences on golf’s development. The 18-hole round emerged from a practical alteration to St Andrews and became standard through tradition and the influence of leading clubs. The 14-club limit was a deliberate regulatory decision intended to preserve the importance of golfing skill while addressing practical concerns about equipment.
Nearly nine decades later, the principle remains relevant: improvements in equipment should not diminish the importance of a golfer’s ability to play different shots.
A Note on This Article
This article was prompted by a YouTube video in which Rick Shiels was talking to Tommy Fleetwood. During their conversation, the whisky story was presented as fact, while the reason for the 14-club limit remained unexplained. Curious about both claims, I decided to investigate.
The article was researched and written with the assistance of ChatGPT, with an independent review by Claude. Both AI tools helped examine the historical evidence and refine the text.
Sources and Further Reading
- Scottish Golf History — 18 Hole Round
- Scottish Golf History — Oldest 18-Hole Courses
- Muirfield — Course History
- USGA — A Brief History of Revisions to the Rules of Golf
- USGA — Celebrating 120 Years, Part 2
- USGA — History of Equipment Rules (PDF)
- LINKS Magazine — Why Only 14 Clubs?
- The R&A — Rule 4: The Player’s Equipment
