Racism, Nationalism, Sexism on Display as LPGA Tells Golfers to Learn English or Risk Membership Suspension
That's what the LPGA began telling its members recently, according to Golfweek magazine which broke the story on its website on August 25. A mandatory meeting for South Korean golfers (the LPGA's largest international contingent) on August 20 first revealed the details of this new requirement. ESPN reports that female golfers will be expected to give interviews and deliver acceptance speeches without the help of a translator:
"Athletes now have more responsibilities and we want to help their professional development," deputy commissioner Libba Galloway told The Associated Press. "There are more fans, more media and more sponsors. We want to help our athletes as best we can succeed off the golf course as well as on it."Yet as Golfweek reported, "Every Korean player who spoke with Golfweek here was under the impression she would lose her tour card if she failed the test rather than face suspension." The online article notes that out of 121 international players from 26 countries on tour, 45 are South Koreans, and that a golfer's ability to 'entertain' is what's at stake:Players were told by LPGA commissioner Carolyn Bivens that by the end of 2009, all players who have been on the tour for two years must pass an oral evaluation of their English skills or face a membership suspension.
Hilary Lunke, president of the Player Executive Committee, said much of this initiative stems from the importance of being able to entertain pro-am partners. Players already are fined if the LPGA receives complaints from their pro-am partners. Now the tour is taking it one step further. “The bottom line is, we don’t have a job if we don’t entertain,” Lunke said. “In my mind, that’s as big a part of the job as shooting under par.”At the Golf Channel, Brian Hewitt states it more bluntly in his analysis "Lost in Translation":
I have watched LPGA Pro-Ams and seen the stereotype: Four cigar-chomping, middle-aged American men saying hello to a 22-year-old South Korean woman who bows at the introduction on the first tee. There are smiles but very few words exchanged over the next five and a half hours after which the men scratch their heads and wonder why their foursome paid $10,000 for little or no conversation.Asian American advocacy groups and civil liberties organizations have caught this whiff and responded quickly to what appears to be a racially motivated decision:Who’s to blame is a matter of opinion. But an imposition of oral evaluations carries with it no small whiff of infringement upon civil liberties.
- The Golf Blog notes that "Asian American Justice Center organizes boycott of LPGA for "English proficiency" rule."
- Newsday says "LPGA could be bringing on a discrimination lawsuit."
The question is what comes next for a sport that values marketability over substance, and one that has always operated with an unspoken subtext that attractiveness, particularly to those deep-pocketed males out there, is the cart path to success.Will there be a required physique for the tour? Will there be a sexual-orientation requirement to appease those lusty sponsors? Why not? You get the impression the LPGA would dress them all like Olympic beach volleyball players and have them drive the beer wagons during the pro-ams if possible....
An organization dedicated to women that perpetuates the stereotype that how a woman talks and how she looks is more important than what she accomplishes has lost its bearings.
Comments
A couple years ago, a golfing bud and I went to an LPGA tournament. At one of the par 3s, a backup happened, with 3 groups waiting on the tee. One of the lesser-known players got to chatting with some of the fans. (LPGA players are very friendly, compared to most PGA players.) During the course of this conversation the pro recounted the time she had been told in person by an LPGA official that she needed to “show more skin” during tournament rounds and that long pants were
suitable only for bad weather and the “older” players.
I frankly think that if the LPGA could produce a field of 150 Natalie Gulbises, they couldn’t care less if they all shot 95.
Boy is this a loaded article or what. The ACLU
Well… here’s a surprise… sports as entertainment and catering to the backers who pay for that entertainment to exist. Especially in a sport played on course often housed and built by exclusive, exclusionary groups…
On another vein… it does bring to mind when I worked in the food broker industry… this time of year would occur the annual golf outing for all the manufacturers, brokers, and grocery chain buyers where deals were made and prices set… Part of the enticement for deals were the caddies supplied… female caddies who actually worked in another “profession.” Just something to think about the next time you push your cart through the aisles…
It’s all entertainment.
This is a loaded article. The ACLU has to much clout and very one sided at times. (that’s another topic). But then that is why we have a legal system.
I happen to agree with the LPGA as it relates to the language barrier and their rationale. It is a business and they too, have rights. However, as to the “dress code”, well, all events pretty much have this. I hope the women don’t surcumb to scanty, cleavage “costumes”. Many old”American” men are not all cigar chomping, exploiting for entertainment. They really do like the game!!
The Olympic vollyball scanty costumes,(marketing the game) do you really think folks were watching their athletic ability, except that they won.
It seems the U.S. does much to accommdate so many languages and there seems to be no effort from those that come here. Yes, something does get lost in the translation as they bow their heads in their “cute shy manner” as they collect $$$, sarcastic, yep.
It took women many years to get to this level of the sport,golf. Hopefully, it is not going to get exploited for the sake of marketing.
Racism in golf??? Well I never!
What’s wrong with accommodating multiple languages in the LPGA MLL? How does this impact you personally in any way?