 | The examples and perspective in this article deal primarily with the United States and do not represent a worldwide view of the subject. (December 2020) |
A country club is a privately-owned club,[1] often with a membership quota and admittance by invitation or sponsorship, that generally offers both a variety of recreational sports and facilities for dining and entertaining. Typical athletic offerings are golf, tennis, and swimming. Where golf is the principal or sole sporting activity, and especially outside of the United States and Canada, it is common for a country club to be referred to simply as a golf club. Many country clubs offer other new activities such as pickleball, and platform tennis.
Country clubs are most commonly located in city outskirts or suburbs,[2] due to the requirement of having substantial grounds for outdoor activities, which distinguishes them from an urban athletic club.
Country clubs originated in Scotland[3] and first appeared in the US in the early 1880s.[4] Country clubs had a profound effect on expanding suburbanization[5] and are considered to be the precursor to gated community development.[4]
- ^ Goldfield, David (2007). Encyclopaedia of American Urban History. Sage Publications. pp. 192–193. ISBN 978-0-7619-2884-3.
- ^ "Country club". Oxford Dictionaries – Dictionary, Thesaurus, & Grammar. Archived from the original on June 10, 2008.
- ^ Wray Vamplew, “Sharing Space: Inclusion, Exclusion and Accommodation at the British Golf Club before 1914” Journal of Sport and Social Issues 34, no. 359 (2010): 359, doi: 10.1177/0193723510377327.
- ^ a b Simon, Roger D. “Country Clubs.” In The Encyclopedia of American Urban History, edited by David R. Goldfield, 193-94. Thousand Oaks, CA: SAGE Publications, Inc., 2007. doi: 10.4135/9781412952620.n110.
- ^ Gordon, John Steele, “The Country Club” [dead link]. American Heritage 41, no.6 (1990): 75