A century ago, as racial segregation strictly barred Black golfers from setting foot on public and private fairways across Central Indiana, a modest five-hole dirt layout on the city’s east side emerged as a sanctuary of access, community and athletic excellence.
Beginning Aug. 16 through Aug. 22, Douglass Park Golf Course will officially mark its centennial, celebrating 100 years as one of the oldest municipal golf courses in the United States where Black people were welcome.
For course manager Glenn Bradley, the upcoming weeklong milestone honors a century of resilience that transformed improvised practice grounds into a sacred home for Black sports history.
“The Douglass course originated in 1926, so this will be one huge celebration,” Bradley told the Indianapolis Recorder Newspaper. “We’ll be celebrating from the 16th to the 22nd. We’ll be having an event every day of that week.”
Named in honor of abolitionist and statesman Frederick Douglass, the park was established by the city in 1921 as a segregated recreational facility for Indianapolis’s Black residents. By 1926, community demand led to the creation of a rudimentary golf layout — a stark contrast to the manicured, white-only courses across Marion County.
“This was the only place that we could play,” Bradley said. “And we had five holes, and they were actually tin cans.”
An Indianapolis Recorder article from April 7, 1928, referenced “the placing of six tomato cans around the pasture and calling it a golf course.”
Despite those humble beginnings, the course evolved into a premier destination on the United Golfers Association (UGA) circuit — the national organization founded in 1925 to provide competitive opportunities for Black golfers barred from the PGA of America. Over the decades, legendary figures graced Douglass Park’s fairways, including world heavyweight boxing champion Joe Louis, PGA color-barrier pioneer Charlie Sifford and Ted Rhodes.
For Bradley, the centennial is deeply personal. His connection to the course stretches back more than six decades to his high school days at the historic Crispus Attucks High School.
“We played high school golf at Shortridge (High School), and (Douglass Park) was one of the courses that we would come to for practice,” Bradley said.
Thirty-one years after practicing on the greens as a teenager, Bradley joined the course staff on the employment side in 1993, eventually rising to manage the historic facility where he has served for over three decades.
Bradley recalls a special moment at the course in the late 1990s, when future golf legend and pioneer Tiger Woods graced the course alongside his father, Earl.
“We have even had Tiger Woods come to Douglass,” Bradley said.
As legend has it, a young Tiger took a couple of swings at the historically Black golf course.
The 100-year celebration kicks off Aug. 16 at 3 p.m. with a special showcase hosted by the course’s ladies’ league. On Aug. 17, the First Tee youth organization will host dedicated youth programming. While weekday community events are free and open to the public, competitive tournament rounds held on Aug. 21 and Aug. 22 require advance registration and player fees.
Looking ahead to the course’s next century, Bradley emphasizes that Douglass Park’s primary mission remains youth development, affordable access, and representation for minority junior golfers.
“Although I will likely not be around to see it, I would like to see more Black players, more young people come over to Douglass and be exposed to the sport,” Bradley said. “We want to continue making golf special for the young people … We make it affordable for the next generation.”
As the course prepares to welcome hundreds of alumni, local golfers and civic leaders for the weeklong festivities, Bradley invites all of Indianapolis to come out and honor a century of living history.
“Come on out to celebrate with us,” Bradley said. “Come out and enjoy the history.”
Contact multimedia & senior sports reporter Noral Parham at 317-762-7846. Follow him on X @3Noral. For more news, visit indianapolisrecorder.com.
Noral Parham is the multi-media reporter for the Indianapolis Recorder, one of the oldest Black publications in the country. Prior to joining the Recorder, Parham served as the community advocate of the MLK Center in Indianapolis and senior copywriter for an e-commerce and marketing firm in Denver.
