Scottish National Dictionary (1700–)
Hide Quotations Hide Etymology
About this entry:
First published 1956 (SND Vol. IV).
This entry has not been updated since then but may contain minor corrections and revisions.
FEATHERY, n. An old style of golf-ball, cased in leather and stuffed with feathers, in use c.1850 before the invention of the gutta-percha ball. See Guttie.Fif. 1897 R. Forgan Golfer's Handbook 37:
“Lang Willie” — a famous cadie in his day, and withal a skilled producer of “featheries” — used to maintain that no ball-maker with a conscience could make more than three balls per diem.Sc. 1937 St Andrews Cit. (3 July) 8:
In the year 1844, Tom [Morris] made 2456 “featheries,” and those cost 1s. 6d. each. One of these balls lasted only a round, and it was, therefore, easy to account for the welcome given to the gutta.
