Title: The kingdom of golf in America /
Authors: Moss, Richard J.
Publisher: University of Nebraska Press,
Year: 2013
Subjects: Golf United States History; Golf Social aspects United States.; United States Social life and customs.
Abstract: From its beginnings in the northeastern United States in the 1880s, golf has seen its popularity, and its fortunes, wax and wane, affected by politics and economics, reflecting tensions between aristocratic and democratic impulses. The Kingdom of Golf in America traces these ups and downs, ins and outs, in the growth of golf as a community. Moss describes the development of the private club and public course and the impact of wealth and the consumer culture on those who play golf and those who watch. He shows that factors like race, gender, technology, suburbanization, and the transformation of the South that shaped the nation also shaped golf. The result is a unique, and uniquely entertaining, work of cultural history that shows us golf as a community whose story resonates far beyond the confines of the course.
Contents: From nothing to something -- Golf literature -- Clubs and courses -- Golf before the War -- Golf and World War I -- Golf's golden age? -- Golf in the 1930s -- Golf and World War II -- Hogan, Snead, and Nelson and the rise of the modern touring pro -- The golf community in a new age of affluence -- Golf and the age of television -- Golf and the two-party system -- Understanding the golf community -- Against the wind -- Appendix A: Golf, parks, and the American lawn -- Appendix B: Golf courses in 1920 -- Appendix C: The PGA in 1935.