JAN 2022
www.nwgolfadventures.com
editor. O from the
Northwest
News & Notes
Kris Fay
It’s time to remember Lee Elder and other golf pioneers ver the last few years, Black
had been relegated to carrying the bags of
History Month has taken on more
white players and were kept off many of the
importance and a deeper meaning.
country’s most exclusive courses.
For golf, that means taking the time
to look at the relationship between
But the problem isn’t just the TOUR itself.
African Americans and the game we all love
The golf media in the United States rarely
to play. For the most part, that relationship
scratches the surface when it comes to
has been a toxic one.
social justice and race relations in the game. They hit on the easy stories but fail to ask
Following the death of George Floyd and
the tough, uncomfortable questions. Many
other African Americans at the hands of
reporters are happy to ask about playing
police officers - and the protests that came
tournaments in Saudi Arabia or slurs heard
after - the PGA TOUR made what could be
coming from the mouths of players on
called a half-hearted attempt to celebrate
television, but few had the guts to ask
the
players about Black Lives Matter or their
contributions
Players
like
of minority players.
Cameron
Champ,
Harold
Forbidden Fairways - Calvin H. Sinnette Forbidden Fairways is not just a history of the African Americans who have been playing golf for over 200 years but a tribute to them as well. From the unnamed South Carolina enslaved young man who first dared to hit a golf ball when his master wasn’t looking . . . to another young man named Tiger who dared to win the Masters while the whole world watched. It’s a sad story in places, uplifting in others.
Game of Priviledge - Lane Demas This groundbreaking history of African Americans and golf explores the role of race, class, and public space in golf course development, the stories of individual black golfers during the age of segregation, the legal battle to integrate public golf courses, and the little-known history of the United Golfers Association (UGA)--a black golf tour that operated from 1925 to 1975.
thoughts on race in the United States.
Varner III, Tony Finau, and (of course) Tiger Woods were lauded and celebrated. It was
This year, for Black History Month, dig
contemporary players who benefited from
a little deeper and learn more about the
the inroads Woods had been making since
complicated story that is African Americans
1997, low-hanging fruit.
on the golf course. To get you started, I’ve found three books you should read; they’re
The TOUR put out a statement about
listed on the right. Let us know what you
support
think.
for
the
African
American
community, but largely skimmed over the game’s ugly past in which people of color
Kris Fay
Owner - NW Golf Adventures
02
Uneven Lies - Pete McDaniel A fast-moving heart-warming narrative on the history of African-Americans in golf. Beginning with the 1896 U.S. Open where blacks first played in national competition, to the invention of the golf tee by an African-American dentist in 1899, to the early clubs and facilities open to people of color, to the service roles that served as an introduction to the game. And much, much more.
