These associations derive, in part, from fairly obvious considerations. Because a golf course is so expensive to build and maintain, the cost involved in playing the sport is comparatively high -- much higher than, say, for bowling. As a result, wealthier people tend to have more access to the sport, and moneyed activities -- like the conduct of business -- tend to be associated with playing the game. And these meanings persist, even as golf begins to enjoy more and more popularity among less-wealthy economic groups.
As with bowling, golf's cultural meanings or significations are largely traditional. Golf probably originated in Scotland (although shepherds may have made sport of knocking pebbles around with a stick long before the birth of Christ). Around the year 1440, golf began to enjoy such popularity among the Scots that King James II prevailed upon Parliament to prohibit golf during the month of March (Menke 500). This early version of golf, which was to be suppressed by further edicts from Scottish monarchs, was probably much different than the game we know today in terms of courses and equipment. By the time the game began to be cultivated by the upper classes (including in 1542 by Queen Mary, the first recorded woman to play golf), the game's equipment began to become more sophisticated and the courses more elaborate. By the 17th century, "golf was a game for club members" almost exclusively (Menke 500). To join a club, one needed money; golf was well on its way to being a game reserved for the economic elite.
Although golf has changed dramatically over the years, to the extent that it is now cheaper to play nine holes of golf at the Pullman Golf Course (not including equipment costs) than it is to take your little sister to the movies, these cultural significations continue to govern the way we perceive the game and its players.
Links to golf-related Web pages:
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