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The cameraRacial & Gender Discrimination
For the longest time, African-Americans appeared on golf courses only as caddies. Even after they started playing golf, they were relegated to a separate tour, organized by the United Golf Association, a black equivalent of the PGA. This segregation was forced by a clause in the PGA’s rules, stating that it was “for members of the Caucasian race”. In addition to the PGA, most golf clubs also had exclusionary policies with guidelines prohibiting African Americans from playing. In the South, most municipal and public courses either prohibited black access or only limited them to one day a week of play.
This restriction was not removed until 1961, at which time the United Golf Association ceased to exist. Even so, it wasn’t until 1975 when the first black man, Lee Elder, would play in the Masters at Augusta. However, discrimination continued to exist at private country clubs. The issue came to the forefront of news in 1990 at the PGA Championship being held at Shoal Creek in Birmingham, Alabama. Hall Thompson, the founder of the exclusive all-white club, said “his club wouldn’t be pressured into accepting African-American members” and declared his right to associate or not associate with whomever he chose. Not surprisingly, this sparked protests, demonstrations, and the threat of boycotts from black organizations, which prompted many sponsors to pull out for fear of losses, thereby removing television coverage of the event. This incident caused the PGA to write up policies that required any club hosting a PGA event to “contractually guarantee that they did not discriminate”.
Even now, it is still difficult to evaluate whether the racial discrimination issue. Although there are no longer any restrictions concerning tournament play, in a survey conducted by USA Today, only 5% of private clubs divulged their racial breakdowns, hinting that they still have something to hide. Of eight clubs hosting events on the PGA Tour, the average minority population is only 12%. On the other hand, some people feel that even though minorities can now legally join a club, many won’t. After all, “why pay $100,000 to get looked at cross-eyed [for a game]? Education and job opportunities, they’re worth the hostility”.
Data from a USA Today Survey
More problematic than the number of minorities in golf clubs is the number of women. Very few women purchase their own memberships, and most women are usually “widow members” who have inherited memberships. Even for women who pay the exact same dues as male club members, it is not unusual for them to be treated differently, such as being excluded from prime tee times and not having voting rights.
Even if it there were no discriminatory policies against women or minorities becoming members at private golf clubs, the very nature of the clubs themselves makes them exclusionary. According to a USA Today Survey, the average initiation fee on the 78 host courses of the LPGA, PGA, and Champions Tour is $48,900. This does not even include monthly dues and fees, in addition to “assessments for operating and capital expenses for the club”. At the Trump International Golf Club in West Palm Beach, Florida, yearly fees themselves are $13,000 on top of the initiation fee of $350,000. But if you consider the households with an income greater than $100,000, 87% are white, 5% are African-American, and 5% are Asian, with the remaining 3% a mix. Of individuals making more than $100,000, 83% are male. These statistics show that minorities and women are significantly less likely to have the means to enter a club.
Furthermore, money isn’t the only issue, because connections also play a major role. 67% of private clubs require a current member to sponsor a prospective member, and oftentimes several existing members must “second” the invitation. As such, clubs are self-selecting so that it is very hard for a woman or minority to “get a foot in the door”.
Disabilities Discrimination
One of the more recent cases regarding disabilities discrimination in golf is that of Casey Martin, who received a scholarship to play golf at Stanford University. Before winning the 1994 NCAA Golf Championships with his teammates Tiger Woods and Notay Begay, he won 17 junior golf titles on his own.
Unfortunately, (or maybe amazingly enough), he is afflicted with Klippel-Trenaunay-Weber Syndrome, “a degenerative disorder that causes his veins to rupture and fill the cavities around his tibia with blood”, (tibia referring to the shin). Effectively, his right leg is extremely weak, so that he cannot walk an entire 18-hole course, but must use a golf cart from one hole to another.
However, although the NCAA allowed Casey to use a cart in college tournaments, the PGA Tour maintained that it was against their rules, with the only exception for players 50 and over on the Senior PGA Tour. Casey fought their decision in court, suing the PGA under the American Disabilities Act of 1990 which requires “reasonable accommodation” to allow disabled people to take part in activities at public places. The exception is if making such an accommodation constitutes a “fundamental alteration” of the game. In 1998 a federal judge ruled in favor of Martin, stating that “walking is not a fundamental part of the game, and that allowing Martin to use a cart would not ‘fundamentally alter’ PGA Tour events”.
“The case has sharply divided a sport that cherishes rules and tradition”. Some players, including Jack Nicklaus and Arnold Palmer spoke out against the use of carts by anyone in an elite competition because it would give the person an edge over opponents and take away a critical aspect of the game – the ability to walk an 18-hole course. Other players, such as Phil Mickelson, have said, “I think it’s important that every major sport has the right to have competitive rules. On the same token, I don’t feel by having somebody riding a cart, he’s going to beat me or shoot lower scores because of that”.
When the PGA appealed the decision, turning to the Supreme Court on the basis of its right to determine the rules for its own competition, the Supreme Court ruled 7-2 in favor of Martin, reaffirming that the accommodation does not “fundamentally alter the nature” of the game. Although this is a victory for Casey Martin, he still may not play golf much longer, as his leg has continued to weaken and amputation may become necessary.
Casey Martin
