ABSTRACT
This chapter reviews research on women in golf, both from historical and modern-day contexts, and concludes with some thoughts for the future. While efforts were made to include evidence from a range of international contexts, much of the research cited in the chapter emanates from the traditional golfing nations of Australia, Great Britain, Ireland and the United States. Golf club rules, regulations and constitutions still limit female members, where both associate membership and male-only clubs remain in existence, particularly in the USA, Great Britain and Ireland. A wealth of evidence from the American golf industry confirms how the presentation and marketing of golf can isolate female participants. Female golfers are sometimes presented and positioned as the 'other' in contrast to the dominant male position, as exemplified in the use of language such as 'ladies' rather than 'golfers'. Female golfers are widely perceived as inferior to their male counterparts.
