Golf in Palm Beach County: Enduring elite enclaves, 1897-1987

In the late nineteenth century, when representatives of America's urban elite began spending their winters in newly created southern resorts, they brought the game of golf with them. Golf appeared in Palm Beach County simultaneously with the creation of Henry M. Flagler's luxurious, new resort hotels. Early in the twentieth century, golf developed into more than simply a game, it represented an emerging American lifestyle. As a game, golf embodied the values of individual competition and fair play; as a lifestyle, it required a modicum of wealth, leisure time, and frequently led to the creation of private golf-course communities. Golf played a particularly significant role in Palm Beach County's history. By 1987, after ninety years of growth interrupted by periods of stagnation, Palm Beach County boasted of having more than one hundred courses, with over sixty golf-course communities--a haven for residents of elite enclaves.