Golf clubbing in modern Japan (and beyond)

Angus Lockyer School of Oriental and African Studies, University of London 

This talk will trace the history of golf in Japan, from its prewar practice by reclusive elites, through the postwar explosion of course development and mass adoption, to the recent rash of bankruptcies and emergence of a more consumer-oriented, female-friendly pursuit.  This history has produced a very particular kind of golf, in terms of landscape, organization, practice and paraphernalia, which one could explain in the hackneyed terms of Asian distinction: a unique culture initially distorting a western import, but eventually giving way to market imperatives and converging to global norms.  The talk will suggest, however, that it is more useful to understand it through a less culture-bound lens, which can help explain how a similar story is now being written in Korea, China and beyond.