Successful workers or exploited labour? Golf professionals and professional golfers in Britain 1888–1914.

Golf was one of the fastest growing recreational sports in Britain before 1914. It created a market for professional golfers as shopkeepers, teachers, green-keepers, and craftsmen. A database of 3,000 players was used to examine their social and economic experience at club and competitive level, and this experience was then compared to that of professionals in horseracing, cricket, and football. Golfers were the first sportsmen to permanently organize themselves with the establishment of the PGA in 1901, which provided welfare services and promoted tournaments, thus actively and uniquely assisting the development of the industry within which its members worked. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Economic History Review is the property of Wiley-Blackwell and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)