Golf

Culture

Club By William I. Dawason

With so many African-American celebs embracing the game of golf, it’s o cially no longer a moment. It’s a movement.

Hip-hop artist Quincy Matthew Hanley, also known as Schoolboy Q, was exposed to the sport of baseball when growing up in his South Central Los Angeles neighborhood and, after practicing, became really good at it. He was also an academic standout (thus the rap moniker), fi nding school easy to navigate. So when his friend bet him that he couldn’t teach himself to make a golf birdie—one of the toughest shots in the sport—within two years, of course Hanley accepted the challenge. “He bet me, and in less than ten rounds I made a birdie, sank a 70-foot putt, and it was over.”

That challenge ignited a love aff air for the game for Q, and he hasn’t looked back since. He will admit that he was never familiar with the game, recalling only the names Tiger Woods, Phil Mickelson, and Arnold Palmer (“and that’s just because of the drink.”) Now he plays regularly, and even though the game is humbling, he won’t stop until he excels at it. And until he’s able to help youth from inner cities like South Central become exposed to the game as well. “Growing up, I never even seen a golf course in my life until I made some money,” he recalls. “So that’s one of my goals now, as an artist. It costs so much money to play and I’m looking for help to try and get kids some golf clubs, whether they use them or not, so they know that they can play.”

His story is similar to that of so many other African American celebrities who took up the game of golf in recent years. What started for most as an homage to Tiger Woods, who burst upon the PGA Tour in 1997 and, as a rookie won his fi rst Masters Tournament, has now become a platform for them to hone their skills on the greens and promote the game to the next generation.

“Ask any celebrity here,” stated comedian/writer Chris Spencer earlier this year at the Anthony Anderson Celebrity Classic, “and they’ll tell you that as soon as they saw Tiger win that green jacket, they realized that we could play this game. A lot of us went and bought clubs and headed to the driving range that same year.”

“Golf was a white man’s sport,” according to legendary Motown singer Smokey Robinson. “Black and Hispanic kids didn’t know anything about golf. Now that they’re being exposed, it gives them the chance to play and to be more informed.” Hollywood stalwarts Anderson, Steve Harvey, and Cedric “The Entertainer” saw early on just how important it was to have diversity in the game. The trio began their own love aff air with the game before taking that love to greater levels, each hosting annual tournaments where their celebrity friends can both participate on the course and raise funds that will benefi t various organizations, with the bigger goal being exposing youth to the game.

To-date, the Anthony Anderson Celebrity Golf Classic, the Steve Harvey Invitational Golf Tournament, and the Cedric

“The Entertainer” Celebrity Golf Classic combined have raised more than $5 million.

Lexus, as lead sponsor of all three tournaments, thus creating more opportunities for golfers of color to play, continues to lead the way when it comes to diversity. Their support of organizations like the APGA and My Brother’s Birdies provides even more ways for golfers of color to work on their game on some of the country’s most famous courses. “All people are capable of great things when they are given access to it, specifi cally information and resources,” according to actor/author/activator Dondré T. Whitfi eld, who also serves as a Lexus ambassador for the APGA. “The game of golf, for people of color is no diff erent. Lexus supporting golfers of color is important for the game to be grown organically, and to have the game begin to look more like the country: diverse.”

Being exposed to the game when he was young was also important to Los Angeles Clippers’ head coach Glenn “Doc” Rivers, as he recalls spending time on the course with his dad in Chicago growing up. “My dad golfed. He would go to the public courses, and introduced me to the game. But I never played. I was his caddy, and I learned so much about him and about myself while we were out there.” Mentorship programs set up by African-American golf organizations like the APGA Foundation, which is also supported by Lexus, are priceless. Like Schoolboy Q and Rivers’ dad, they strive to place golf clubs in the hands of those who wouldn’t have access any other way. However, the APGA goes further, hoping to establish lifelong bonds with those they mentor, setting up careers in the game instead of just moments.

According to Whitfi eld, playing the game makes a diff erence in other ways as well. “I often explain to people how instrumental the game had been in teaching me about myself,” he stated. “[Golf] is truly a gentleman’s game of integrity. It teaches me a great deal about the people I play with as well.”

Seeing golf as a way to learn about life, as a way to challenge themselves, and as a way to give back through raising funds and mentorship shows that African American celebrities are seeing beyond the greens, creating a culture that will inspire even more diversity in the future.