No. Golf is a game where the winner has the lowest score. It's reused as the term for a programming challenge to implement an algorithm with the fewest number of characters. See https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Perl#Perl_pastimes .

This is no more indicative of Perl than the Obfuscated C contest is indicative of C.

Not at all, but it is representative of the best of Perl culture: smart people who enjoy playing with unexpected corners of a complex system, while remembering the difference between "work" and "play." See Ton Hospel's insane Roman numeral calculator: http://perlmonks.org/?node_id=594299

Javascript anyone?

    !function r(y,a,z,b,x){for(x=y--?-1:print(a);++x<n;z&c|b&d||r(y,a+1?a+' '+x:x,z|c,b|d))c=(1|1<<y+9)<<x,d=1<<9+x-y}(n=readline())

http://golf.shinh.org/reveal.rb?N+Queens/murky-satyr_1217229...