9Literature ReviewWill HoekwaterSouthern New.docx

9
Literature Review
Will Hoekwater
Southern New Hampshire University
SPT-501 Research Methods in Sports Management
Dr. Richard Hsiao
Not everybody is a golfer: Bourdieu and affluent bodies in
Mexico.
This article examines the golf clubs in Mexico as well as the
membership of the people in the upper-middle and upper social
classes to demonstrate how socio-economic status and lack
thereof are internalized. It also utilized Bourdieu's model to
look into the association between physical games and the
internalization of social structures. This article strongly relates
to my research question of “how social class affects golf?”
since it focuses on the area of sports, clubs, and social
structures. Golf in Mexico is only played by the affluent private
clubs which depicts social stratification.
This study was followed an ethnography of three major golf
clubs in the city of Mexico that was conducted for 7 months
2010 and 2014 summers. Two main sources were used during
the study: field notes to try and comprehend the association
between business and golf, as well as 58 semi-structured in-
depth interviews carried out among businesspeople, business

executives, golf journalists, caddies, and other people who were
associated with the sport. The snowball method was used to
collect the interviews. There was an ethical consideration in
place, especially at the golf course where the interviews were
not recorded to reduce the bias via preconceived categories into
the study research.
However, this study had a few limitations which may impact my
research. The researcher’s limited capital hindered him from
becoming a golf sociologist among other golfers. Being situated
between the middle and lower-middle class prevented the
researcher from cooperation with some participants which
means that some interviewees were not entirely honest in their
responses. The research process was also affected by symbolic
and material dynamics since establishing contacts, particularly
in the upper class was difficult due to the researcher's
subordinate position among the golfers. Additionally, the
researcher had poor golf skills which prevented him from
properly interacting bodily with some of the interviewees at the
golf course (Ceron-Anaya, 2017).
This study is very key because it shows how golf is associated
with high social status and high social recognition. It also
displays the disparities and power dynamics of the sport. Golf is
a sport where people strive to get the meaning of the society,
their personal identity, and their position within the social
world.
Caddies and “Cronies”: golf and changing patterns of exclusion
and inclusion in post-apartheid South Africa
This article demonstrates how to golf as a sport represents the
change of exclusion from race to class. The study emphasizes
how golf has excluded most of the South African population
from vital resources and how it is promoting some people to
become power elite with economic and political power. This
article totally relates to my research question as it examines the
interplay between becoming a golf player and achieving a
certain social class, and it also explains the benefits of being a
member of the elite class in terms of gaining power and

influence.
This article does a comprehensive analysis of the literature
about some golfers. This study shows that these golfers are
entangled in personalized networks based on capitalism. This
article proves that golf is generally about class power connected
to capitalism and extremes of social and wealth displays. This
study also shows that although most South Africans are poor,
golf courses are more expensive and the average citizen cannot
afford them. Besides, golfers who are made up mostly of whites
are paid large sums of money which creates an elite class
surrounded by large circles of less privileged people (Cock,
2008).
This article informs my research proposal by explaining the
aspects of the inclusion and exclusion of golf as a sport. Golf
has taken people's land, heritage, decent work, and being
involved in making decisions. The dynamics of inclusion depict
how only those who can afford are allowed to play the game.
The white community makes up the majority of this group and
there are mostly political and business interactions during golf
activities. Golf portrays a high social class where the powerful
and rich dominate and the rest of the people with low socio-
economic status remain at the bottom. The black elite also
meets in such golf settings to strike deals and make informal
networks with other powerful people.
African American Golf Clubs in the Early Development of
Black Golf
This article illustrates the role of African American golf clubs
in the promotion and facilitation of golf among African
Americans. These golf clubs were involved in sponsoring golf
tournaments, networking with other golf clubs, and ensuring the
development of golf in the African American community. At the
time, golf clubs were formed during a period of racial
segregation to create institutional structures that were similar to
those of the whites and due to being excluded from white golf
activities. The golf clubs aimed to not only reduce racial
segregation but also to reduce social classes by encouraging

broader participation and a platform of exposure for black golf
successful athletes with the hopes of boosting their success in
their golf careers. This study's purpose relates to my research as
it proves that golf was interwoven in social class and there
existed barriers to participation in terms of race.
This article takes a deep dive into the history of golf
development among African American golf clubs since the early
20th century America. It shows the earlier goals of golf clubs
and how private golf courses were slowly established by
African American golf clubs. Golf clubs became those of the
elite and the common African American golf players who were
great at the sport became golf instructors and professionals
among the socially elite. The main limitation of the article is
the lack of sufficient documentation of the African American
golf activities to gain a better understanding of their success
and eventual decline (DAWKINS, BRADDOCK & GILBERT,
2018).
This article will greatly contribute to my research proposal
because I will be able to explore the development of golf
through a historical lens. I will investigate how golf, once a
whites-only sport diffused into the African American culture,
and how social classes were formed within the sport over time.
Golf Class Teaches Students the Art of Schmoozing
This article explains a basic golf course that entails more than
just swinging a club but also swinging a deal. This is better
known as the art of schmoozing. This implies that playing golf
is more than a physical exercise but a platform to conduct
business. This article is proof that golf is mainly played by the
upper class or people who have succeeded in their careers and
businesses. It is a place of striking deals and building
businesses which demonstrates the relationship between golf
and social class.
This article explores a teacher-student interaction where the
former teaches her students the golf course. Ms. Schendel
teaches golf students and she emphasizes the need for acumen
such as proper golf etiquette to impress clients. While playing

golf, Ms. Schendel teaches her students to always play a
character or not be their true selves to best serve their interests.
A golf course is a platform where the main goal is to please
others, act interested in what other people have to say, or
remain silent depending on the golf activity. Regardless of
one’s career path, taking a golf course may be the best approach
to meeting and networking with clients. The article even
stresses that on the field, you do not have to win, losing may be
preferable especially if the client is not that good to boost their
confidence and esteem (Golf Class Teaches Students the Art of
Schmoozing. 2002, April 19).
The article does not follow a normal research process and thus
there are no study limitations. Nevertheless, this article will
strongly influence my research proposal because it explores the
business side of golf. Unlike most sports, golf has a certain
class to it, and conversations and interactions are quite unique.
Golf requires more than having the technique to play in the field
but the knowledge of how to interact with the elite to get a seat
at the table.
Who Cares Where I Play? Linking Reputation with the Golfing
Capital
and the Implication for Golf Destinations
This article indicates that people can be motivated to play golf
to increase their golfing capital which is often strengthened by
being part of the golf courses and destinations that are elite and
have high reputations. Besides, the variations in golfing capital
create hierarchies in the golfing community and golf players at
reputed courses enjoy high levels of self-esteem. This relates to
my research question of how social class affects golf because it
is evident that golfers choose golf activities and destinations
with good reputations and capital to enjoy high social status.
Being part of a high social class comes with a strong personal
identity and a sense of power and influence which is what most
golfers chase.
This study collected data via qualitative research to explore the
connections between the choices of destination and reputation.

It illustrates how partaking golf affects the growth of reputation
by regarding the presence of dominant and developing cultures
that enable golfers to repute golf facilities and use the same
reputation to improve their position or status. This article also
uses Bourdieu’s ideas of cultural and social capital to
acknowledge the motivations impacting destination and course
selection for golf holidays.
This study will inform my research proposal by pointing out the
connections between reputation, golfing capital, and golf
destinations. Golfers tend to have a lot of leisure time and
money to afford expensive destinations and extravagant
accessories. Golf is synonymous with a particular kind of
economic and social status and not just anyone can play the
game if they wish to. The choice of where the golfer wants to
play is related to sacred feelings and it depends on the
involvement of the golfer. Reputation also affects how the
golfer perceives the course and this reputation can increase
based on the quality of direct perceptions, recommendations by
word of mouth, media exposure, etc. (Humphreys, 2011).
Etiquette and the Cultural Diffusion of Golf: Globalization
and Emotional Control in Social Relations
This study explores the effects on golf etiquette codes when
golf experiences global diffusion. This article aimed to
understand the golf social situation and interaction and thus
assessed the social framework within which the players pursued
their goals, the unconscious learnings that influenced their
actions, the constraints faced, and the actions of other players.
The study concluded that face-to-face interactions such as golf
required impression management such as dressing well,
managing emotions, and showing politeness to other players. In
cases where etiquette was not followed, the victims felt
embarrassed and unsafe and there was a need to re-establish the
initial impression by making excuses. This study relates to my
research question by illustrating the importance of emotional
control in regulating social relations.
This study was part of a larger etiquette study by the Norwegian

Research Foundation. A historical review of the growth of golf
and its etiquette as well as a comparative analysis of the
experience and practice of golf etiquette in England and
Norway. Semi-structured interviews were utilized to stimulate
the memories of interviewees and assist them to remember their
experiences and practice of etiquette in the sport. The responses
reflected the interviewees' comprehension of golf etiquette and
some elements of emotional control and social relations
regulation. The comparative method helped evaluate how these
elements were affected by the cultural and social factors in both
countries. However, the study was limited because it focused on
only two countries and thus the findings cannot be generalized
to the global community (Malcolm & Tangen, 2015).
This study will inform my research proposal as it shows the role
of etiquette in golf. This article shows how social relations are
founded on great emotional control among golf players. Golf
etiquette centers around self-control, impression management,
and embarrassment.
The Impact of Social Class on Golf Participation: A Local Study
This article acknowledges that golf is a sport well concentrated
among the elite groups of society especially because of the
expenses associated with joining a golf club. This article
demonstrates the relationship between golf and social class and
recommends strategies for mainstream sports. The article also
explores the barriers to pursuing golf such as socio-economic
barriers, lack of opportunities, and lack of a local golf
champion to trigger interest in golf. This article greatly
attempts to answer my research question about the impact of
social class on golf.
The study was sociological and thus used human subjects and
interviews to obtain ideas and views on mainstream golf. The
study used a sample size of 12 people from 4 categories of 3
pre-identified golf clubs. This was essential because it allowed
a comparison between members within the same club and
between different golf clubs. This data was complemented by
quantitative data such as the number of members and the

membership cost. All the interview questions were designed to
analyze class and taste because they highlighted the people’s
social class and their interesting patterns of behavior. However,
the study was limited in trying to access relevant information
from local golf clubs concerning their membership and figures.
For instance, one club was dropped from the study because of a
lack of disclosure about some club details. Besides, face-to-face
interviews were converted to telephone or skype interviews
because of time and logistical constraints. Besides, those who
could not be reached via telephone and skype sent their
responses in written form via email. All these different methods
interfered with the validity of the responses. Lastly, one of the
respondents was not interviewed and was unable to be replaced
only leaving 11 respondents interfering with the initial sample
size (Ivarrson, 2013).
However, this article will build on my research proposal by
informing the different forms of capital needed to develop a
taste for golf. This includes economic forms, inheriting from
family, learning from friends, or adopting the sport on
competitive grounds.
Reference
Ceron-Anaya, H. (2017). Not everybody is a golfer: Bourdieu
and affluent bodies in
Mexico. Journal of Contemporary Ethnography, 46(3), 285–309.

Cock, J. (2008). Caddies and “Cronies”: golf and changing
patterns of exclusion and inclusion in post-apartheid South
Africa. South African Review of Sociology, 39(2), 183.
DAWKINS, M. P., BRADDOCK, J. H., & GILBERT, S. (2018).
African American Golf Clubs in the Early Development of
Black Golf. Western Journal of Black Studies, 42(1/2), 71–82.
Golf Class Teaches Students the Art of Schmoozing. (2002,
April 19). The Chronicle of Higher Education, 48(32).
Humphreys, C. (2011). Who Cares Where I Play? Linking
Reputation with the Golfing Capital and the Implication for
Golf Destinations. Journal of Sport & Tourism, 16(2), 105-128
Ivarsson, V. (2013). The Impact of Social Class on Golf
Participation: a Local Study. Retrieved 25 September 2022,
from.
Malcolm, D., & Tangen, J. O. (2015). Etiquette and the Cultural
Diffusion of Golf: Globalization and Emotional Control in
Social Relations. International Journal of Golf Science, 4(1),
33-49.
Quinn L. Richardson-Newton
SPT-501 20TW5 Southern New Hampshire University
GOLF &
SOCIAL
CLASS
9-1 Final Project: Research Proposal
Golf & Social Class
Introduction

The game of golf has been dated back to 100 BC, when early
forms are traced to the
Roman game of pagancia, which the participants used a bent
stick to hit a stuffed leather ball.
Also, during the Song Dynasty (960 CE to 1279 CE) in China,
they played chuiw an, which was
played with several clubs and a stuffed ball (A Brief History of
Golf, 2017). One can imagine,
the game and technology has changed since then. The PGA
(Professional Golfers’ Association)
was not formed until 1916 and women only started playing with
men in 1952. A game, which
such long history, comes with many rules, etiquette, and the
need of money to play the game
today.
The game of golf is getting more and more expensive every
year. The price of golf clubs,
with the newest technology, continues to skyrocket. A new
driver can cost as much as $500 -
$1,000, for one of the thirteen clubs that you need to play a
round of golf. A set of irons can run
the common golfer up to $2,000. After all that, they still need a
putter. A club that is considered

the most important club, can also be anywhere between $500 -
$1,000. After that’s all said and
done, a new golfer is still missing equipment. They are still in
need of a golf bag, clothing, shoes,
and other miscellaneous equipment (range finder, golf balls,
tees, divot tool, ball markers, etc.).
Now that they have their equipment, it’s time to find courses to
play and “belong” to a golf club.
There are 15,500 courses in the United States (Lumen Sports,
2020), which include many public
and private courses. Some of the best public courses to play
include Shadow Creek, Pebble
Beach, and Whistling Straits. Since they are considered the
best, they are expensive for the
common golfer to play. Shadow Creek is expensive as $500 per
round, Pebble Beach is $495 per
round, and Whistling Straits is $340 per round (Golf Courses in
America, 2011). The private
courses require memberships in order to play. These
memberships are not easily accessible. The
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Golf & Social Class

less expensive courses just require payment to join. Other
courses require letters of
recommendation, references, and include an interview
process; not to mention the hefty
payments after all of that. One of the most expensive golf
memberships in the world, Liberty
National in New Jersey, costs $240,000 per year. The
Commissioner of the PGA, Tim Finchem,
went on to say, “I think it’s one of the most stunning settings
for professional golf there is on the
planet”. This golf club includes an on-site heliport, yacht
services, and numerous spa services
(Golf Industry Central, 2017). Liberty National may be an
extreme case, but there are private
courses that expensive as well. Other courses, like Augusta
National in Georgia, are completely
private and do not allow women to play the course.
As seen above, golf is an extremely expensive sport. The game
is driven to attract and
serve a certain type of social class. With golf being so
expensive, the common golfer would have
a difficult time playing the game on a consistent basis. The
purpose of this study is to determine
whether golf and social class have a direct correlation. Golf is

not strictly for the middle and
upper class, as anyone can play, but the constant increase in
price to play is forcing players away
from the game. Some semi-private courses drive up their price
to push public golfers away in
hopes of keeping the etiquette and integrity of the club.
By researching different courses all over the country and
surveying golfers from those
courses, there will be a better idea of how the courses operate to
attract new members and how
existing golfers feel towards the price of the game.
Literature Review
With the sport of golf being geared toward a certain social class
and demographic of
people, golf uses a common “etiquette” and dress code to help
separate the common golfer to the
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Golf & Social Class
higher ups. Before the etiquette and dress code, it was race.
Separation of white and black
(Dawkins, Braddock, Gilbert, 2018). African American youth

first served as caddies at the all-
white golf clubs during the 1800s and early 1900s, which did
provide early exposer of golf to the
African American community. The purpose of Dawkins,
Braddock, and Gilbert’s (2018) article
was to “describe the role played by the earliest African
American golf clubs in promoting golf
among African Americans”.
With going into further detail, Dawkins, Braddock, and
Gilbert (2018) explain that
African Americans had created their own golf clubs mainly
because of the country’s segregation
and racism against African Americans. They stated, “the earliest
African American golf clubs
sought to develop golf as a sport that would be interwoven into
the social fabric of black life at
both elite and grassroots levels and free of barriers to
enjoyment and participation for blacks”
(Dawkins, Braddock, Gilbert, 2018). In any given sport,
African American athletes had been
viewed as inferior. Especially during the Jim Crow era (late
19th to early 20th century), sports
were aimed and promoted towards whites only. Which led to
African Americans creating their

own organized leagues. In the golf world, golf was able to
exclude African Americans with the
“Caucasians only” clause. With only one, widely known African
American golfer on the PGA
Tour, Tiger Woods, golf was viewed not very popular within the
black community (Dawkins,
Braddock, Gilbert, 2018). Throughout the early to mid 1900s,
African American golf clubs had
rose around the country to help promote the sport of golf within
the black community. Their
hopes were to create networking through tournaments, men and
women, to help increase the
popularity. In conclusion, Dawkins, Braddock and Gilbert
(2018), had concluded that the rise of
African American golf clubs during the 1920s-1940s had
advanced the popularity of golf within
the African American “society” elite and the black masses.
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Golf & Social Class
Although there was no precise research methods and data
presented, Dawkins, Braddock,

and Gilbert had given qualitative research on how golf
had separated African Americans,
especially during segregation times, from the rest of the golf
world. Without having quantitative
data, is their only limitation. This study directly correlates to
my proposed research study of how
golf promotes itself to certain social classes and demographics.
With golf separating whites and
blacks early on, it shows that it can still happen today. Yes, golf
is more popular within the black
population. As you see more African Americans on the PGA
Tour, not just Tiger Woods.
Much like the separation of white and black people in the game
of golf, Cock (2008),
looks into golf and the exclusion of masses within South Africa.
Cock’s purpose of study is to
show the social exclusion of golf within South Africa. This
study takes a look at how expenses of
certain golf clubs exclude certain people. The River Club has an
entry fee of R200,000 (local
currency) and an annual fee of R25,000 (Cock, 2008).
There are different forms of exclusion that Cock looks further
into such as, exclusion
from arable and grazing land, exclusion from communally

owned land, exclusion from scarce
water sources, exclusion from access to fishing and recreational
sites, exclusion from heritage
sites, exclusion from decision making, exclusion from decent
work, and exclusion of social
classes and social categories (Cock, 2008). Not only has golf
excluded the common people from
participating from the price to play, it has also taken away daily
life for South Africans. The
exclusion that directly relates to my proposed study is the
exclusion of social classes. This
exclusion is based on how expensive the courses are to play.
Cock (2008) gives more examples,
the Johannesburg Country Club costs RI5,000 entrance fee and
R5,000 a year. At Tsitsikamma
Coastal Golfing estate membership fees are R40,000 per annum;
At Fancourt membership fees
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Golf & Social Class
are RI3,350, and RS50 for IS holes. At Pezula visitors pay R775
for I8 holes. Not only is it
expensive for the common golfer, there is an elaborate etiquette

and dress code strictly imposed
for different golf courses.
Cock goes further in how the golf courses have taken away land
for daily life, which
would be a whole other study to research. There is a limitation
to the study, that Cock focuses on
the more expensive golf clubs. Cock mentions that there are
over 500 golf courses in South
Africa. Could some of those courses be available to the lower
class? Or are all of them geared
toward the social elite? Again, this study was more of telling
the facts rather than conducting
research. That is another limitation of Cock’s article.
Ceron-Anaya (2015) goes further into the research of the
exclusion based on social class
in Mexico. The purpose of Ceron-Anaya’s study was to
“show how private golf clubs are
invisible sites for the average city dweller, both metaphorically
and literally. This characteristic
fulfills a dual political role, by (1) preventing any
questioning over the monopolization of
resources and (2) reinforcing social distance. The analysis
then examines the relationship

between old golfers (natives) and new golfers (newcomers) and
how the growing participation of
newcomers illustrates an important transformation in the world
of affluent private golf clubs”
(Ceron-Anaya, 2015).
Ceron-Anaya focused his study on three exclusive golf clubs in
Mexico City and focused
his research to be conducted during the summers of 2010
and 2014. 58 semi-structured
interviews were conducted with corporate executives and
businesspeople who use golf as part of
their professional interaction (Ceron-Anaya, 2015). Ceron-
Anaya used participants from all
different social classes. He was able to interview upper middle
and upper class (represented
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Golf & Social Class
39.6% of sample), caddies (29.3% of sample), golf journalists
who belong to the lower middle
class (6.9% of sample), golfer without a club who are part of
the middle class (10.3% of sample),
golf consultants (10.3% of sample) and golf instructors (3.4% of

sample). By having participants
of all different social classes, it will help validate Ceron-
Anaya’s point (Ceron-Anaya, 2015).
Ceron-Anaya found that his own social class affected how
members would answer and
elaborate during the interview. He stated that a member stopped
elaborating his answers when
the member found out that Ceron-Anaya took public
transportation to get to the golf course. I
believe Ceron-Anaya’s study directly correlates to what I
am looking for in my proposed
research. Again, like Cock, having participants of different
backgrounds and social classes
provides more information to the study. Also, by gathering
participants from multiple golf
courses helps the study as well. Every course is individualized,
so by getting a bigger sample
pool helps gather different perspectives.
In the article, Golf class teaches students the art of schmoozing,
it shows that people use
golf to help network and benefit of getting set up for a job. The
article explains that there is a lot
of busines taking place on the golf course between golfers.
Proper gold etiquette should be

followed in order to impress a client and it states that you want
to make the other person feel
special.
This article has some serious limitations as it does not include
any research conducted,
but it does show that people are thinking like a businessperson
while on the golf course. It’s not
just for leisure, golf is used to conduct business. This adds to
the social aspect of golf and how
the “higher ups” use golf.
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Golf & Social Class
Malcolm and Tangen’s (2015), main goal of their research was
to examine the cultural
diffusion and the etiquette code of golf. Through their
research, they were able to gather
information on the role of emotions and psychological life
(Malcom and Tangen, 2015).
Although they were only able to provide qualitative data, they
were able to conclude that the
concepts self-control, embarrassment and impression

management would be valuable to
understanding the phenomenon of golf etiquette (Malcolm and
Tangen, 2015).
After interviewing 38 golfers of all levels, from scratch golfers,
golfers with handicaps as
high as 33, and golfers who do not report their handicap,
Malcolm and Tangen were able to
understand that golf etiquette plays a huge role. All golfers also
reported that dress code plays a
major role in who is “accepted” on the course (Malcolm and
Tangen, 2015). The four main
etiquette categories of golf include: safety, courtesy, pace of
play, and care of the course, and
some would include dress code (Malcolm and Tangen, 2015).
Through my experience of playing,
etiquette plays a role in every round that a golfer participates
in. Providing the data that golfers,
of all levels, recognize the importance shows that they are
serious about the game enough to
learn and understand. The article never stated anything
regarding social class but does show that
the serious golfers follow the different categories of golf
etiquette.
Although the research provides great information, there are

limitations to Malcolm and
Tangen’s findings. As I have a prioritized field on golf in the
United States, their research was
conducted with Norwegian and English golfers. Yes, golf is a
universal sport and all serious
golfers do follow proper etiquette, this could be a much
different case (Malcolm and Tangen,
2015).
Humphries (2011), takes a different approach to the golf
industry in his article. Her goal
was to determine if there is a correlation between the level of
golfer and the type of course they
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Golf & Social Class
choose to play, while on vacation. This study also had a wide
range of golfers, ranging in number
of years of experience, handicap and total number of
vacations (Humphries, 2011). Like
Malcolm and Tanger, Humphries only gathered qualitative data.
She believed that this would
allow greater opportunities for in-depth insight of the study.
Her methods included using semi-

structured interviews through email to gather information.
Through Humphries methods, she used an email database
to contact golfers. After
contacting 107 different golfers, Humphries ensured to use
golfers, of different levels,
“infrequent golfers” (5 or less rounds per year), “moderate
golfers” (6-25 rounds per year), and
“dedicated golfers” (25 or more rounds per year). Humphries
conducted, in total, nine interviews
with each golfer, lasting anywhere between 30-90 minutes
(Humphries, 2011). Making sure to
use semi-structured interviews, this allowed flexibility to
respond to the comments and details
provided by the participants which ensures that all relevant
issues come to light (Humphries,
2011).
Through Humphries research, she was able to determine that
there are multiple factors
that play a role in which course a golfer will choose to play
while on vacation. These include
access, perceived golf reputation, quality and reputation of
course, word-of-mouth
recommendations, course design, and linking the golf capital

with its reputation (Humphries,
2011). Lots of golfers are willing to spend money, especially on
vacation, at the finest courses at
their destination. Yes, they will take recommendations of
certain courses and decide which to
play based on the factors above. But then they will also make a
decision based on how much
each course will cost. If the course is a once in a lifetime
opportunity, they may be more willing
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Golf & Social Class
to pay more. Golfers in a lower social class may not even play
golf on vacation; or they will play
at a much less prestigious course.
Humphries concluded that golfers will play at certain course to
add to their own golfing
capital. Golfers feel that their capital is enhanced by
experiencing elite, highly reputed, golf
courses and destinations. This can be achieved through
reporting their experiences within their
cultural network, recounting their playing of a signature hole,
their overall score achieved or

their opinion of the course, the facilities and the welcome
(Humphries, 2011). By increasing their
personal capital, golfers are able to place themselves higher in
their local social class of fellow
golfers. They can feel they have experienced something other
golfers have not.
Lastly in McGinnis’ research, the article goes into depth
regarding women and their
position in a male-dominated world of golf. There is perceived
sexism in the sport. This study
was taken back in 2000, before Annika Sorenstam,
Michelle Wie, Martha Burk, and other
newsmakers in golf penetrated the national media (McGinnis,
2005). McGinnis spoke about who
the sport of golf promotes masculine hegemony with the
“citizen golfer” framed as young, male,
and able-bodied (McGinnis, 2005).
McGinnis was able to gather information from ten female
golfers that had played rounds
of golf at Midwestern golf courses. The main goal was depth of
experience of each golfer while
playing multiple courses. From how they were treated at the
start of their round, throughout, and

after their round. Female golfers are viewed much differently
from men when it comes to golf.
The lady’s tees are much closer to the whole and men
perceive female golfers to be slow
(McGinnis, 2005). This is an of statistical discrimination
when it comes to women golfers.
Driving distance is often an easily identifiable and important
marker of who deserves to be on
9
Golf & Social Class
the course. Much of the results were spent on the issue of
driving distance and how the female
golfers feel about the issue.
The article dives deeply in a major social issue when it comes
to the game of golf. Male
golfers definitely are viewed differently when compared to
their counterpart. There are
limitations to the research. For starters, the qualitative data was
tested and recorded in the year
2000. With the changing game of golf, these results could be
extremely different in 2020. Also,
the courses being played were in the Midwest. Could the results

be different in different parts of
the country? Could the results be different in different parts of
the world? Based on the LPGA,
most golfers come from all over the world; there are not many
“good” American women golfers
on tour.
Research Design
The proper design for gathering data and research is by
surveying golfers from different
golf courses, that range in price (memberships and public play
per round) and are in a similar
geological location. There are a lot of courses in the New
England area, all ranging in price and
privateness. By surveying the golfers, this will provide
qualitative data to help gather opinions of
the golfers. Conducting semi-structured interviews and surveys
will allow flexibility to respond
to the comments and details provided by the participants which
ensures that all relevant issues
come to light. Along with getting qualitative data, by gathering
financial data of each participant
will help gather quantitative data. Some of this financial
data includes income, numbers of

rounds per year, price of golf clubs, and price of equipment.
This data will give a better sense of
how much each participant is willing to spend (money and time)
on golf per year.
10
Golf & Social Class
There are strengths and weaknesses to this approach. The
strength of gathering opinions
of each participant gives strength of how they feel towards
constantly rising prices of golf and of
each golf course. The participants will provide personal
experience to give a better idea of what
they go through on a daily basis. By collecting the quantitative
data, mentioned above, this will
give a better sense of how much each participant makes and
how much they are willing to spend
on golf. That will give a better understanding of where each
participant falls on the social ladder.
The weaknesses of this approach are that the geographical
location of intended research
is a limited area. Not every golf course, in the United States, is
the same. As mentioned, there are

15,500 golf courses in the United States, which means
thousands (maybe millions) of golfers.
Researching a certain area of the country will only give a
general idea of what every golfer is
feeling. This approach will not give a whole answer of how
EACH golfer feels. Also, not every
golfer may feel comfortable to give their opinion or financial
data. This would require finding
more participants for the study, researching other golf courses,
or finding another area of the
country to research.
Data Analysis
In order to make sure the qualitative and quantitative data
provides strength to the
intended research, it must be valid information. This means that
the data is non-bias. This is a
four-step process: 1) fraud, making sure every participant had
been interviewed. 2) screening,
making sure each participant was chosen for the correct criteria.
3) procedure, making sure the
procedure was followed correctly. 4) completeness, making sure
all of the questions had been
asked (Humans of Data, 2019). This will help the quantitative
data. By getting a mean of each

participants income and financial data, this will show the
average of each participant. It will
11
Golf & Social Class
show the frequency of how many times each participant plays
per year. It will also show the
range of how much each participant spends on golf (courses and
equipment).
To analyze the qualitative data, content analysis and narrative
analysis will need to be
used. The content analysis will be used to analyze the
documented data, surveys. It will help
analyze the responses provided by the participants. The
narrative analysis will provide
information from the interviews of each participant, how they
are acting in each interview. It will
also provide information of personal observations of each golf
course (Humans of Data, 2019).
As mentioned, each golf course is not the same. They all have
their own rules and way of doing
things. Giving personal observations can give further insight of
how each golfer and golf course

acts. This will show a big difference between each course.
This way of collecting data will provide strength to the overall
research by providing lots
of data of each participant. By having the financial data, mean,
frequency and range, this will
provide the best insight of each participant and how they relate
to a certain social class. By
providing their opinions, it will also help gather their input on
the constant changing price of golf
and how it affects their standing.
There are strengths, but there are also weaknesses. By
collecting data this way, there
could be outliers that skew the data. Every participant is
different and individualized. Some
participants may play a lot of golf but use cheaper equipment
and play at less expensive courses.
This means they could feel completely different to other
participants, that play at the more
expensive golf courses.
At the end of the day, golf is one of the most expensive sports
in the world. Between the
equipment and pay-to-play prices, the price can stack up. The
better off a golfer is, the easier it

would be to help pay for golf. This proposed study will help
show that the game of golf is
12
Golf & Social Class
designed to attract the upper class of people, in order to keep
the tradition and integrity of the
game. Through the rules, code of etiquette, and price, the game
is able to force people out of the
golfing world and create its own “club”.
Resources
Ceron-Anaya, H. (2017). Not everybody is a golfer: Bourdieu
and affluent bodies in
Mexico. Journal of Contemporary Ethnography, 46(3), 285–309
Cock, J. (2008). Caddies and “Cronies”: golf and changing
patterns of exclusion and inclusion in
post-apartheid South Africa. South African Review of
Sociology, 39(2), 183.
DAWKINS, M. P., BRADDOCK, J. H., & GILBERT, S. (2018).
African American Golf Clubs in
the Early Development of Black Golf. Western Journal of Black
Studies, 42(1/2), 71–82.
Golf Class Teaches Students the Art of Schmoozing. (2002,
April 19). The Chronicle of Higher

Education, 48(32). Retrieved from https://link-gale-
com.ezproxy.snhu.edu/apps/doc/A146965209/ITOF?u=nhc_main
&sid=ITOF&xid=f62ee7c6
Humphreys, C. (2011). Who Cares Where I Play? Linking
Reputation with the Golfing Capital
and the Implication for Golf Destinations. Journal of Sport &
Tourism, 16(2), 105-128.
doi:10.1080/14775085.2011.568086
Malcolm, D., & Tangen, J. O. (2015). Etiquette and the Cultural
Diffusion of Golf: Globalization
and Emotional Control in Social Relations. International Journal
of Golf Science, 4(1), 33-49.
doi:10.1123/ijgs.2014-0018
McGinnis, L., McQuillan, J., & Chapple, C. L. (2005). I JUST
WANT TO PLAY Women,
Sexism, and Persistence in Golf. Journal of Sport & Social
Issues, 29(3), 313–337.
A Brief History of Golf. (2017, April 28). Retrieved from
https://www.thesportshistorian.com/a-
brief-history-of-golf/#
How many golf courses in the US? - Lumen Sports. (2020,
January 20). Retrieved from
https://lumensports.com/golf-courses-us/#:~:text=And now the
approximate number,in the US is
15,500.
The 10 most expensive golf club memberships in the world.
(2017, February 04). Retrieved from
https://www.golfindustrycentral.com.au/golf-industry-news/the-
10-most-expensive-golf-club-
memberships-in-the-world/

13
Golf & Social Class
The Top 10 Most Expensive Public Golf Courses in America.
(2011, May 09). Retrieved from
https://www.hagginoaks.com/blog/the-top-10-most-expensive-
public-golf-courses-in-america/
Gebreamlak, Kenneth, Castro, L. D., Sese, T., Blessing,
Vandana, . . . Nwabia, C. (2019, July
12). Your Guide to Qualitative and Quantitative Data Analysis
Methods - Atlan: Humans of Data.
Retrieved from
https://humansofdata.atlan.com/2018/09/qualitative-
quantitative-data-analysis-
methods/
14

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