An Important History

CADDYING ON THE COLOR LINE

How Black Caddies Defined and Redefined Golf in the South

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Craig J. Gill

Caddying On the Color Line

Hardcover with dust jacket. 272 pages.

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For most of the 20th century, tens of thousands of Black caddies worked the fairways and greens of the South’s golf courses. From the famed links of Augusta and Pinehurst to the local country clubs and resorts across the region these African American men and boys carried bags, selected clubs, and read putts. 

They served a population of tourist golfers who wanted to get the “full southern experience.” They fought for fair pay, fair treatment, while receiving neither. They fought for equal access to public courses when the laws of desegregation were largely ignored. And they tried to move into other jobs as the rise of the golf cart spelled doom for the Southern caddie.      

 
Meticulously researched and rigorously vetted, CADDYING ON THE COLOR LINE reveals how Southern Black caddies—young and old—navigated a world of racial tension, professionalized a job once seen as unskilled, became expert golfers in their own right, and helped to pave the way for the rise of Tiger Woods. Along the way, the history of Black caddies reveals the unexpected reasons for the rise of the golf cart and helps explain why there are fewer Black golfers on professional tours today than in the 1960s. 


The thousands of Southern Black men who called caddying their job over the course of the 20th century may not have lived extraordinary lives. But their daily struggles and triumphs abounded with resilience, pride, skill, and dignity.      

This book tells their story.

PRAISE FOR CADDYING ON THE COLOR LINE

 “Caddying on the Color Line illuminates a profound yet long-overlooked chapter in golf's history, weaving together the stories of men who carried not just golf bags, but the weight of systemic inequity on their shoulders. Through meticulous research and intimate storytelling, Gill reveals how Black caddies navigated the complex social dynamics of a white game, developing an expertise that shaped the sport while confronting daily indignities with quiet resilience. By amplifying these long-silenced voices, Gill offers not just a historical account, but a deeply human story of dignity and fortitude against the backdrop of America's struggle with racial justice.”
 —JOEL BEALL
Senior Writer for Golf Digest, author of Playing Dirty


 “Deeply researched and beautifully told, Caddying on the Color Line adds a rich new chapter to the story of how African Americans helped shape the game of golf.”
 —STEPHEN PROCTOR
Author of Monarch of the Green and The Long Golden Afternoon


“In telling the fascinating and poignant story of Black caddies, Craig Gill reminds us of the backstory of unheralded workers who were crucial to the success of golf in the United States. Gill, with enviable sensitivity, reveals the ambitions and disappointments of generations of Black caddies, before explaining their eventual disappearance from most of the nation’s golf courses. Golf enthusiasts and non-golfers alike will find much to ponder in this timely book.”
—W. FITZHUGH BRUNDAGE
William Umstead Distinguished Professor of History, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill

“In a more just world, people like Howard Wheeler and J.C. Hamilton—caddies who later became two of the first great Black golfers—would be remembered today like the first great Delta blues musicians are. And yet, the early figures of African American golf do not have the luxury of ancient recordings for historians to marvel over. The story of Black caddies in the South is not simply a straightforward story of systemic racism. Like most things in life, there are nuances to the tale. Craig Gill explores both sides of the complex, problematic, and proud history of these largely unknown golf heroes in a straightforward and honest approach.
 Caddying on the Color Line helps us remember.” 
—JIM HARTSELL
Author of When Revelation Comes and The Secret Home of Golf

About the Author

CRAIG J. GILL is a Scottish writer, researcher, and historian. Having grown up playing golf and caddying for the occasional American tourist in Edinburgh and the East Neuk of Fife, he completed an undergraduate degree in History and a Master’s in American Studies at the University of Glasgow.

He spent the subsequent five years in the U.S. South, studying the region’s complex past. He earned a PhD in History from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.

Craig now lives in Vancouver, British Columbia—four thousand miles from his (and golf’s) home country, but still deeply committed to illuminating a more holistic understanding of golf’s rich past.

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