Golf makes an interesting topic for an ethnology study because it brings people together who may belong to different subgroups and joins them in a new group, that of "golfers." Playing golf has rules for the game, but there are also social rules about how to behave while playing the game. Sometimes those who belong to the group called "golfers" assume a common background among all the players, and sometimes that assumption is misplaced.

             For my study I interviewed two men who play golf at a local golf club. The two men are friends and often play together. One man is 34 and a graduate of Washington University. He is married with one child. He has played golf since he was 12, and is Caucasian. The other man is named George. He is 32 and a graduate of Stanford University. He was on the Stanford golf team and has played golf since he was ten. He is married with two children, and of African-American heritage. .

             Although the two men are of different races, in some ways their backgrounds are similar. Both men were only able to go to the universities they attended because of academic scholarships, and both majored in chemistry. This is in fact how they first met each other: they both worked for the same company as chemists. As they worked together and gradually got to know each other, they found that they had a fair amount of things in common, including their college background, similarities in their family, and a shared passion for golf. In fact the golf club Henry belonged to had broadened its membership rules after decades of barring not only Blacks but also Jews and women, and Henry sponsored George for membership. Both men were willing to talk freely with me.

             I talked to Henry first. He got into golf because his father played golf. His father gave him lessons, and he developed ability. He was on his high school and his college golf teams. In addition, when he was in high school he played competitively and by the time he graduated had accumulated, as he said, "quite a few trophies.