On a recent sunny, breezy afternoon, several golfers were out taking some swings at Akron’s historic Portage Country Club.
One of this club’s founders helped design the first “practical” golf ball - and, in turn, helped boost the sport’s popularity at the turn of the 20th century, said David Lieberth, president of the Akron History Center.
The balls hit on the course these days can travel far and take another hit at the next hole. In the early days of golf, that wasn’t the case, he said.
“The golf ball was basically gutta percha, which is a natural rubber-type material that covered some substance that was inside the golf ball,” Lieberth said. “Very often, it was feathers - bird feathers. The golf balls didn't travel very far, and they certainly weren't accurate.”
These balls, known as ‘featheries,' could break apart after one or two hits, he said.
Even though golf had been around for centuries, it wasn’t until 1898 that reliable, consistently reusable balls came into play, Lieberth said.
That’s when Cleveland businessman Coburn Haskell visited the B.F. Goodrich rubber factory in Akron to meet his friend, Bertram Work, the executive who co-founded the Portage Country Club.
While waiting for the meeting, Haskell toyed around with some rubber bands, Lieberth said.
“He rolled them into a ball, and the legend has it that he bounced it and couldn't believe that it went above his head,” Lieberth said. “He said to Work, 'This would make a great golf ball.'”
The tightly wrapped rubber threads gave the ball a solid core, more durable than feathers. Haskell and Work then covered the ball with the rubber-like gutta percha. The next year, they patented their invention, now known as the “Haskell ball.”
It was used in the U.S. Open tournament for the first time in 1902, Lieberth said.
“The ball traveled at least 20 yards further on a good drive,” Lieberth said. “It was more accurate, and more importantly, they used one golf ball for 72 holes, which was unheard of before that.”
From then on, the Haskell ball became the standard, Lieberth said. It was manufactured in Akron until the mid-20th century.
An original model of the Haskell ball is on display at the Portage Country Club.
The club’s Head Golf Professional Adam Lewicki agrees that the Haskell ball expanded golf’s popularity.
“One of the biggest things it did was, it made [golf] a little bit more affordable because it wasn’t a handmade golf ball that was sewn together, where only a few people could afford it,” Lewicki said. “At the time, really, I think it made golf a lot more accessible for the masses.”
While Akron is known for being the global hub of rubber production in the early 20th century, people often don’t realize factories like B.F. Goodrich, Firestone and Goodyear made more than just tires, Lieberth added.
“They made hundreds, perhaps thousands of different products for home use, office use, sporting goods during the 20th century,” Lieberth said. “People are often surprised that we were the home of the first practical golf ball and other inventions.”
Akron’s impact on the sport didn’t stop at the modern golf ball design. B.F. Goodrich also patented and manufactured golf clubs in the city for some time, and in 1949, Golf Pride began manufacturing golf club grips there, too.
Additionally, Akron’s Firestone Country Club was on the PGA Tour for 72 years, until it was announced this week that the Senior Players Championship will move to California starting in 2027.
“Akron is important in the history of golf, in the history of golf equipment and the history of golf’s legacy,” Lieberth said.
Though golf ball design and production have become even more advanced in the ensuing years, with developments like synthetic rubber and polymer cores and the signature dimpled shell, Haskell and Work’s invention truly changed the game, Lieberth said.
So, the next time you tee up, you have Akron to thank for a good shot.