In 1949, Mao outlawed golf in communist China, declaring it the sport of millionaires. But these days, the sport is on the rise. Dan Washburn spent more than a decade living and working in China and his new book, “The Forbidden Game,” uses golf as a prism to view modern China. In 1949, Mao outlawed golf in communist China, declaring it the sport of millionaires. But these days, the sport is on the rise. Dan Washburn spent more than a decade living and working in China and his new book, “The Forbidden Game,” uses golf as a prism to view modern China.