National Mulligan Day is a holiday that’s observed on October 17th every year and gives everyone permission to take a mulligan in their life. Although the term mulligan was originally used by golfers to describe a free shot given to a player whose previous shot went poorly, it has since been expanded to anyone needing a “do-over” in their life. And that’s why so many people celebrate this holiday. After all, who doesn’t need a do-over, at least once in a while?

The History of National Mulligan Day

National Mulligan Day is a holiday that was first created by C. Daniel Rhodes of Hoover, Alabama. He imagined this holiday as one where everyone could take a second chance. And he may have been onto something because we think everyone could stand to get a second chance—at least once in a while.

The Origins of the Word Mulligan

A question we’re frequently asked is where the word mulligan originated, and that’s a question that we found isn’t all that easy to answer. The word mulligan has several origin stories, and each one of them is very plausible in our opinion. Fortunately, the U.S. Golf Association narrows down all of those origin stories to just three, so we’re going to just talk about those stories.

These three stories all center around a Canadian golfer named David B. Mulligan who was playing during the 1920s. One of the stories says that it was coined after Mulligan hit a poor tee shot and decided to shoot again. Another version says that the extra shot was given to him because he was shaky after a difficult drive. The last story says that he took an extra shot after oversleeping and rushing to try to make the tee time.

Regardless of which origin story you choose to believe, it goes without saying that this term has not only made it into the golfer’s lexicon but has also made it into the lexicon of people all over the world. People use it to call a do-over in a variety of games, including darts and several dice games from the 1980s, and also use it to describe a do-over for virtually any other activity.

Observing National Mulligan Day

This holiday can be observed by giving yourself permission to have a do-over. If you’re like most people, you’re likely very hard on yourself, so National Mulligan Day is a good opportunity for you to give yourself a break and start over again. While you’re observing this holiday, use the hashtag #NationalMulliganDay on your social media posts to spread the word about this holiday.