ABOUT THE 1502


1502 as a brand first appeared in 2009 at a members’ tournament at The Kansas City Country. In the initial invitation, the 1502 was described as a “tip of the hat to the people of Scotland who invented the game and have watched over it for centuries.” The annual 1502 was and is about friends, golf, competition, food and fun!


James II originally banned play because he believed golf was interfering with archery practice, which was needed to defend the homeland against England. Why 1502? As you look at the year-by-year timeline of golf, it becomes apparent that one man and one year stand out – King James IV of Scotland & 1502. In 1502, James saved “the greatest game” from extinction by lifting the ban that his grandfather, James II, had instituted in 1457 and his father, James III, reaffirmed in 1471.

James IV, who historians consider to be the best and brightest of all the Stewart monarchs, understood that golf required strategic thinking, nerves of a lion and a great eye. He came to believe that if a man could handle himself on the links, he would also be a superior warrior.

Soon after the signing of the Treaty of Perpetual Peace in Glasgow between Scotland and England on Feb. 11, 1502, James lifted the ban. In September that year, according to the records of the Lord High Treasurer of Scotland, James paid 14 shillings “for clubs from the bower at Saint Johnston” (Perth). This is the first recorded purchase of golf equipment.

Now you know the why King James IV is the GREATEST of all the Scottish Kings.