Since 1926, Douglass Golf Course has been a treasured landmark in the Indianapolis African-American community. Although the nine-hole course is shorter than many other courses, Douglass offers immense history and rich tradition.
Over the years, the course at 2801 Dr. Andrew J. Brown Ave. has hosted great golf legends and trailblazers including Tiger Woods and Charles Luther Sifford, the first African-American to play on the PGA Tour.
With summer right around the corner, golfers are back on the course.
Glenn Bradley, the self-proclaimed “lead man” at Douglass said, “traffic is picking up, especially since we have some consistency in the weather.”
In the summer, the 5,000 yards of rolling hills and sand hazards host events including Edna Martin Christian Center’s annual fundraiser held in August.
Douglass offers summer programming for children, a demographic the course and many other courses in the area are attempting to capture. From May until the end of July, Monday and Wednesday, children are encouraged to attend golf lessons free of charge.
“We don’t run the event, we just host it,” said Bradley of the free biweekly golfing lessons for children. “There is a gentleman who runs the event. He’s (Larry Brookins) a golfer that’s been doing this for several years and he has about 25-30 kids participate.”
No child who wants to learn the game of golf is ever turned away, he said. In fact, he sometimes sees mature golfers bringing in their children or young relatives to play or watch. It’s a win-win. The children play for free and golfers play at a discounted rate.
However, he believes it’s still difficult to recruit young people to the sport.
“We discovered most Black folks aren’t exposed to golf until they get to high school. It’s kind of difficult to get Black boys and girls interested because it’s not a ‘glamorous’ sport. It’s something you have to work at and it’s not as popular,” said Bradley, who previously coached golf at Arsenal Technical High School.
In 2013, two young Black students in Florida, Ryan Birt and T.J. Wright, 15, contended for the No. 1 positions on two of their county’s top golf teams. The two were also the only two Black golfers on their high school’s boys or girls teams for the next season, according to area coaches.
Bradley believes in order to help youth become interested in golf, they must begin at a much younger age.
In previous years, Douglass met with Indianapolis Public Schools (IPS) and surrounding district officials to attempt to get golf into middle schools and to jumpstart a student tournament, however no plan was acted upon as a result.
Currently many IPS high schools have golf teams for boys and girls throughout the school year. Boy’s golf won the PAAC tournament and the IPSAC tournament recently.
“If schools don’t want to participate, we can’t make them,” commented Bradley.
In the future, the course hopes to attract more youth and secure a variety of golf outings for the community to enjoy.
For more information about the Douglass Golf Course, call (317) 924-0018.
Douglass Golf Course Fees/Extra Information
$10 to play nine holes
$17 to play nine holes using golf cart
$7 to rent golfing equipment
Hot dogs, chips, candy, beer and other snacks available for purchase
Bring a child to golf and play at a discounted rate
Open 7 a.m. to sunset
