The following news, as reported by a variety of outlets, but quoted here as it appeared in the Philadelphia Inquirer, has worked its way through the system of the of the golfing media, both formal and informal, over the past few days:
“A group of 15 players, including world No. 1 Lorena Ochoa, Suzann Pettersen, and top American stars Cristie Kerr, Paula Creamer, and Morgan Pressel, signed a letter demanding the resignation of commissioner Carolyn Bivens.”
Good for them. Far from looking like rebellious children, the LPGA’s stars look, now, like they give a damn about the fact that their Tour is coming apart at the seams.
With respect to the ouster of Bivens, a variety of players, when interviewed at this week’s U.S. Women’s Open, avoided the issue altogether, labeling it an “internal issue”. (As a side note, what a mightily useful tool for the avoidance of direct confrontation. “Honey, are you cheating on me?”… “Sorry dear, that’s an internal issue.”)
Indeed, it is an internal issue, as the Board of Directors must, of course, vote for her to be removed. It appears such a vote may be coming in the following weeks.
I am no Trotskyite, as I believe a state of “permanent revolution” is socially unhealthy, however, with respect to the matter at hand, revolution (read: change of leadership, dramatic overhall) is a necessary evil.
In a legal sense, I assume, and in some practical way, the LPGA Tour is a corporate entity. Therefore, I think there should be a precautionary appearance/reality distinction and an avoidance of armchair quarterbacking. In short, no one outside of the boardroom knows what’s going in in the boardroom (perhaps those in the boardroom don’t either).
Nevertheless, I am an eternal armchair quarterback, and will proceed undaunted. It certainly appears that since taking over as Commissioner in 2005 (leaving her position as CEO of a media company) Bivens hasn’t done a number of terribly constructive things. Doesn’t the LPGA deserve better, or at least, different? Perhaps, someone more concerned with making money than image makeovers?
There is an element, of course, of “It’s the economy, stupid” in play here, to be sure. As a fringe entity in the world of popular/televised sports, the LPGA was always going to struggle in 2008, 2009. However, when the most high profile executive of one’s Tour is making headlines for demanding that all players become proficient with the English language and mentioning that Tweeting during competitive rounds might not be such a bad thing for business, one has problems.
At the rate things are going, the LPGA Tour event calendar for next year will feature the “majors” and about two other tournaments. Bivens’ inability to retain sponsors is inexcusable. However, with the high level strategic thinking demonstrated in the propositions mentioned in the last paragraph, it’s not a surprise.
I envision Ms. Bivens trying to rally the troops with her estimation of the following as the LPGA’s chief problem: “There are too many Asians and foreign born players at the top of the leaderboards every week.” Then proceeding to: “I know how to solve this problem, team! As Americans, I know you want to see American girls on the leaderboard. The fans want to see American girls on the leaderboard! So here’s what we’re going to do: We’ll deport… err… make them pass an aptitude test in English, which they’ll fail. Americans rise to the top of the leaderboard. Viewers tune in to see Creamer and Gulbis, rather than Han and Park. All the sponsors I alienated magically come back and voilà, our problem is solved!”
What xenophobic… I mean brilliant and dynamic… reasoning. The type that’s sure to save a Tour, or any business, in peril.
Her other dynamic tactic, haggling and playing hard ball with sponsors who are already on the verge of ending their tenures as sponsors of LPGA events, has proven equally beneficial for the Tour.
What fine stuff. Fine, fine business practices.
Anyways, the pro-Bivens case seems to be pretty weak. It essentially boils down to not wanting to buy out the remainder of her contract – 18 months or about $1 million. Perhaps a second “pro” is that she’s the first female commissioner of a female golf tour. Those are so weak, in fact, that I’m not going to devote any serious consideration to it here. I simply don’t see how a struggling enterprise can continue to pay a figurehead who has has done little other than engage in public buffoonery aboard a sinking ship, in recent months.
Really, it’s like any sports team, corporate structure, or, hell, any country. When things go sour, he/she on the throne is held accountable. It may be a fallacy, but it’s a pretty well established dynamic.
Given all this, Bivens should go, and sooner rather than later.
Several thoughts…
I’m not sure what took them so long. But it remains to be seen whether this is a case of “better late than never” or “too little, too late.”
Donna Orender. Cindy Davis. The PGA Tour. IMG. The first two may be good commissioners. The second two may be good new owners/managers. We’ll have to see.
Michelle Wie was at the player meeting. Does that mean she’s finally been accepted as a peer by the other women? Or do they just recognize the potential she has for the LPGA? Or a bit of both?
The word on the street seems to be that the LPGA may have trouble buying out the commish. Why don’t the players put their money where their mouths are and buy her out themselves? Heck, Michelle Wie could probably spend $1M of the $20M or so she’s earned and become a hero to her peers in the process.
I said it before and I’ll say it again: Bivens had good ideas – increasing the pension and purses high among them – but her hard-line path, her ignorance of new media, and the countless other mistakes far, far outweigh any good she was trying to do.
We may have a new interim commissioner by the next LPGA event on U.S. soil… and we darn well better by the end of 2009.
Goodbye, Carolyn – you will not be missed.
For the general public, Wie is the best known lady golfer. Her golf playing career may have been mismanaged, but as far as marketing/publicity/promotions someone has done a great job with her.
It looks to me like both sides here need each other. Wie needs help integrating into the playing scene. The LPGA (and their players) need better marketing/promotion skills.
I think because Bivens was the LPGA’s first female commissioner, the players were reticent to
criticize her. They were probably willing to give her more time to prove herself than they would have given an equally inept male counterpart.
Couldn’t agree more – it’s about time. Another example of highly questionable decisions:
When the #12 on the 2009 money list and 29th ranked player is not “qualified” / invited to the US Open, while 26 amateurs out of 156 players get to tee up (that’s 15-20% of the field !!!), this is a serious problem for the LPGA. You can point the finger at the USGA for the new rules but the LPGA must surely have some say and influence on the matter. Or is the USGA speaking a different “english” from the LPGA?
The US Ryder Cup team won last year because Zingers changed his selection criteria and opted for currently in-form players, and not those who played well for a stretch some 2 years ago. Perhaps this same theory might apply for the LPGA majors? Commish? Hello? Hello? You there?
Call it Xenophobia if you will, but I agree with the ascertion that there are too many Asians on the tour. While I enjoy watching players of any nationality play, I’m sure the vast majority of LPGA fans want to have players they can enjoy following and whose names they can pronounce.
As long as this trend continues I don’t see the LPGA digging itself out of the hole it’s in anytime soon.
The loss of the Corning Classic was pretty much the final nail in the coffin for the tour as it stands now. I’m sure it will have to be restructured … perhaps they should follow the GM model? ;0)