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Chuiwan (Chinese:捶丸;pinyin:chuíwán;lit. 'ball-hitting') was agame in ancientChina. Its rules resemble moderngolf.
The bookDongxuan lu (東軒錄), written by Wei Tai (魏泰;fl. 1050–1100) of theSong dynasty, describes how asouthern Tang official teaches his daughter how to dig goals in the ground and drive a ball into them.[1] The game became popular by the Song dynasty; and a work calledWan jing (丸經,lit. 'ball-treatise') of theYuan dynasty was specially devoted to it.[1] The latest documents aboutchuiwan in China are from the two paintings of theMing dynasty from the 15th century.[1] There is a color image of the mural painting still preserved on the wall of a Water God Temple inHongdong,Shanxi.[1] Ling Honglin, a Chinese professor atLanzhou University, suggested the game was exported to Europe and thenScotland byMongol travellers in the lateMiddle Ages.[2][3]
The rules forchuiwan are remarkably similar to that of modern golf, in that players use restricted number of clubs (up to 10 inchuiwan, 14 in golf), holes are spread on terrains of varying difficulty, and marked by colored flags; and there is also strict etiquette and rules with regard to player honesty, with penalties for cheating.Chuiwan balls are of different sizes and made of wood. The tee-off areas are calledji (基;lit. 'base').[4]
The popularity ofchuiwan peaked in theSong dynasty, during which timeEmperor Huizong is reported to have been a dedicated player, and it remained a favorite sport during theYuan andMing dynasties. In theQing dynasty the game of Chuiwan steadily declined, and it eventually became a casual game for women and children.[4]