Golf Trivia
What’s the Origin of “Mulligan”?
The bottom line is
that we don't know. Some mysteries may never be solved. The term "mulligan" in
golf is a second shot allowed by an opponent and not counted on the scorecard.
Just as an aside, note that Mulligan is also a general "nickname" or stereotype
for an Irishman, an underworld term for policeman (obviously dating back to when
so many police were Irish), and a type of stew. Presumably all these relate to
the surname Mulligan, of Irish origin. The term mulligan in golf dates from the
1940s, and the origin is uncertain. By 1949, it had made its way into P.
Cummings' Dictionary of Sports, so must have been fairly common before
that. One theory about the origin cites a certain individual named Mulligan who
blew so many drives that the club allowed him blah blah blah. Those are
presumably the type of origin stories that you hear a particular golf club claim
for their own. Another theory ties to the period when Irish-Americans were
joining fancy country clubs and were derided as incompetent golfers. That would
make the term basically an ethnic slur that caught on, like "Indian summer" or
"Dutch treat."
Source: Straight Dope Science Advisory Board