Augusta May Have To Admit Its First Woman Member

[paperclip]

If there wasn't such a thing called "media", would anybody really care about this?

[zipazoid]

Originally Posted by paperclip

If there wasn't such a thing called "media", would anybody really care about this?

If there wasn't such a thing called "media", would anybody even know about this?

[brocks]

If there wasn't such a thing called "media", would anybody even know about this?

No. And Jack Nicklaus would have been an insurance salesman.

[bnz506]

Until the day everything is gender neutral and there are no women only gyms, fraternities, sororities, girl scouts, boy scouts, mens only smoke clubs (Ive never heard women complaining about this), separate mens and womens bathrooms, and many more, Augusta should just do what they do end of story.  People should commend Augusta for at least letting women on the property.

[zipazoid]

Originally Posted by brocks

No. And Jack Nicklaus would have been an insurance salesman.

ohhhhkay....so the media made Jack?

And technically, he woulda been a Pharmacist like his dad. Was gonna walk in his footsteps.

So good thing the media made him, eh?

[brocks]

ohhhhkay....so the media made Jack? And technically, he woulda been a Pharmacist like his dad. Was gonna walk in his footsteps. So good thing the media made him, eh?

Um, you do understand that "the media" includes TV, right? How much money do you think the pros would be playing for without TV? And technically, as even Tiger fans know, Jack switched his emphasis at THE OSU from pharmacy to insurance, and planned to make that his career, before the big money that TV brought to golf persuaded him to turn pro.

[zipazoid]

Originally Posted by brocks

Um, you do understand that "the media" includes TV, right? How much money do you think the pros would be playing for without TV?

Yes, quite aware. And now that you added meat to the bones of your initial post I now see where you're coming from - your post had to do with how the media has raised purses on the tour instead of the media in the context of this thread's topic. I trust you can see my confusion as a result since I thought you were on-topic.

[brocks]

Yes, quite aware. And now that you added meat to the bones of your initial post I now see where you're coming from - your post had to do with how the media has raised purses on the tour instead of the media in the context of this thread's topic. I trust you can see my confusion as a result since I thought you were on-topic.

My fault entirely. The next time I broaden the context, I will use a less subtle clue than "Jack Nicklaus."

[zipazoid]

Originally Posted by brocks

My fault entirely. The next time I broaden the context, I will use a less subtle clue than "Jack Nicklaus."

Something like "This is entirely off-topic but..." would help too.

Failing that, I will try to file away that when you mention "Jack Nicklaus" in your post you are obviously referring to the fact we never would have heard from him if not for the attention of the media given to the tour & the resulting increase in tour purses as a result. Sorry that wasn't obvious to me.

[brocks]

Something like "This is entirely off-topic but..." would help too. Failing that, I will try to file away that when you mention "Jack Nicklaus" in your post you are obviously referring to the fact we never would have heard from him if not for the attention of the media given to the tour & the resulting increase in tour purses as a result. Sorry that wasn't obvious to me.

Your paraphrase is inaccurate. We may well have heard from him, as a great amateur champion.

[zipazoid]

Originally Posted by brocks

Your paraphrase is inaccurate. We may well have heard from him, as a great amateur champion.

Whatever. You're smart enough to see my point. If you want to make this a match of wits, I concede. You win. Let's move on.

[pikkiwoki]

No they won't.  If anything, outside pressure to do so will make the old fogeys at Augusta dig in their heels even deeper, sponsorship money be damned.  The kind of people we're talking about here will gladly cut off their noses to spite their faces.  They will uphold "tradition" (thinly veiled code word) at all costs.

[ghalfaire]

For whatever it is worth ANGC is PRIVATE organization and has the right to whatever membership criteria they want.  So I suspect it will be sometime (read not in your lifetime)  before a woman gets an invite to membership.  As long as they are not asking me for money I'm OK with that.

[Stretch]

Irrelevant personal anecdote. Years ago (too many) when my wife and I were dating, she worked in finance in NYC. It was still a total (Ivy) frat house scene in those days. Anyway, she was invited to join Wall St. Women or whatever it was called. Big networking deal. She declined, even though it would have undoubtedly been good for her career. When I asked her why, she said something along the lines of: "Because I'd be really pissed off if you joined some shitty boys' club, and I'm not a hypocrite." Good Sheila.

[tefunk]

As most other people have stated... the bottom line is that it is a private club, and they can invite, or not invite, whoever they please.  It is at their discretion, Period!

Now my thoughts personally, I beleive it is wrong to exclude someone based solely on gender, race, etc.  However, I beleive if someone doesn't fit the profile, they don't fit it (like the billions of people in this world, man or women).  I choose my friends based on their values, etc.,and it makes sense for a club to do the same thing.  I wouldn't join a club if I didn't agree with the values of the club and it's members.  And I wouldn't want to be part of a club who allowed someone to be a member who would ruin the dynamic or the atmostphere.  That's why we have exclusive clubs, so people can be involved in the things they enjoy and be around people they enjoy being around.

I will never be invited to be a member at Augusta, and to be honest I'm not sure if I would ever want to join the club either (even if I could afford it).  I don't fit the profile they are looking for, and vice versa.

I will admit this... I would LOVE to play that course!  I would really, really, really, love to play that course!

[zipazoid]

An old friend of mine from my high school golf team is now the head pro at Sharon CC in Sharon Center, Ohio - Dwight Axtell. A very private, mens only club. Used to be a qualifying site for the US Open before the uproar of Shoal Creek & the USGA dropped it as a qualifying site.

Anyway, Dwight invited me to play it. I told my sister & she had a fit (she golfs). She said 'I can't believe you're going to play Sharon CC' I said why & she said cuz it's mens only.

I said 'Are you effin' serious? You're damn right I'm gonna play it.'

'Well I think that's disgusting that they don't allow women to play there.'

'So do I sis. But that ain't my problem. Seeya, I got a tee time to make.'

[Jmdmbike]

At some point there will be a changing of the guard, as they say. Hard to believe this is still the case in 2012.

[mdl]

There's been a lot of at least halfway defending of Augusta, or at least the PGA's 100% lying down about it.  I find that disappointing.  They PGA has taken events away from clubs that fell too far behind the times in their membership.  Yes, ANGC could probably still get most players to come anyway, at least in the near term, but if the PGA withdrew all accreditation, eliminated all points and (at least for the current TV deal) purse money, eliminated exemptions, eliminated every possible benefit any player could gain by playing the Master's except getting to say they won the Master's, it seems hard to believe that wouldn't affect the ANGC at least in the medium term.  Are their members going to financially back the tournament?  Is any major network going to broadcast it when that looks so much like endorsing sexism?  Are any major corporations going to agree to sponsor it?

It seems weak to just say, whatever, ANGC can do whatever they want, they're private.  Every PGA golfer and every golf fan essentially subsidizes the ANGC, both financially and in feeding their self-obsession and self-importance.  We have every right to not only personally disagree with their membership rules but also to try to push for the PGA to actually do something about it like they have at other backwards, behind the times clubs.