It's Not Just a Game: A Case Study in Leisure

Abstract

<p>This work assumes that games and sports provide their participants with opportunities to actualize human potential that is not realized in everyday life. The sport of golf has been chosen to see what it has to offer its participants. A sample of golfers drawn from players at a local civic golf course is studied via participant observation and interviewing. It is seen that golf, for the sample, represents a challenge that is not present elsewhere in their life. The challenge is sought out so desperately and continuously that it appears to take on 'sick' proportions. The sample recognizes this and refers to themselves as 'addicted' to golf. Whether addiction can be thought of in a non-chemical way is then researched and the findings are applied to the sample. It is concluded that addiction can be non-chemical, but because addiction is defined as being antitlhetical to challenge it is concluded that the sample is not addicted.</p>