Migrants Networks and Survival in the Job: Evidence from Foreign Newcomers on the PGA Tour.

This article investigates how migrant social networks, specifically nationality-based networks, influence the job performance of foreign newcomers in the PGA TOUR, a premier professional golf circuit in the United States. Using data from 2002 to 2016, the study constructs social networks based on players' overlapping tournament participation and nationality clusters to assess their impact on newcomers' probability of retaining their tour license after their first season. The findings reveal that for second-tier (non-elite) foreign players, greater social cohesion within their nationality cluster—measured by the density of connections—significantly increases their chances of survival and earning prize money, whereas such effects are not observed for first-tier (elite) players. The study suggests that these nationality networks likely provide social support that helps mitigate the challenges of adapting to a new environment, rather than primarily serving as conduits for information transmission. These results have broader implications for understanding the role of social networks in migrant integration and performance in competitive professional settings.