Astronaut Who Took Golf to the Moon, Reportedly Hid a Massive Secret During the $25 Billion Project in 1971

Golf is truly a holistic sport, we know that. However, it is also not just limited to earth. Golf has been played in the space as well. The famous astronaut, Alan Shepard, played the game on the moon’s surface long back in 1971 during one of the highly revered program’s on moon’s surface.

The moment has marked its presence in the history of golf. Alan’s move was apparently kept secretive and cost the mission a huge sum of money.

Golf reaches its way to the moon, thanks to Alan Shepard

Golf is truly out worldly, and Alan Shepard truly proved that. The famous astronaut’s Golf Shot was truly iconic. The celebratory moment in golf history happened back in 1971, almost 51 years ago.

Read More: Justin Thomas Makes Bittersweet Confession About LIV Golfers: ‘No Reason They Shouldn’t Be Different’

Shepard was an avid golfer and truly enjoyed the game. He got a modified club made just to play the game in outer space. He used the Moon Club to play the iconic moonshot. It was a Wilson Staff Dyna-Power 6-iron head.

Shepard secretly hid it in his space suit. He used his socks to sneak away a few balls. As per popular belief, the director of the mission, Bob Gilruth, was aware of his plan. The condition he apparently allowed Alan Gilruth to play golf on the moon was that the stunt would be pulled off only if there was time and at the end of extravehicular activities.

Even though this was nowhere on NASA’s inventory for the rather expensive program, Shepard still managed to leave golf’s mark on the moon. Golf remains to be one of the only two sports ever played on the moon, the other being Javelin.

Alan hit two balls with his uniquely crafted moon club. The whereabouts of one of which remain to be unknown. Shepard in awe of his iconic shot said, “Miles and miles and miles.” 

However, it was not just a stunt. According to USGA historian, Victoria Nenno, it was in fact “an experiment to showcase the gravitational differences between the Earth and the moon.”

The shot was estimated to be worth millions. The Apollo program cost almost $25 billion at that time, the amount would have risen to around $246 billion in today’s time.

All in all, Alan Shepard’s iconic play of the game of golf on the moon’s surface truly established the game as an extraterrestrial one. The shot still remains to be highly celebrated in the golfing community as a landmark in the history of the game, and the world, in general.