Are we ever going to put women's golf on a par with the men's game?
Women golfers have long faced restrictions at their local courses on what times they could play and which bars they could drink in. Often they were blocked from becoming club captain.
So when Harriet Harman -
http://www.harrietharman.org/the-equality-act
- introduced the Equality Act to give women more rights in work places and social settings, golf clubs were seen as ripe for reform.
But the drive by Labour's leading feminist seems to have landed in the bunker. Many women golfers say that, following the changes, which have brought an end to men-only tee-off times at many clubs, they now have to pay more for membership.
Although the legislation was passed by Parliament just before last year's election and came into force in October, many of its effects are only now being felt, with golf clubs forced to rewrite their own rule books.
I play in Central Europe and they have the right idea here. Most tournaments are mixed and the only separate distinctions are for Scratch results. The net results are mixed with ladies playing from their tees and the men accordingly from theirs. It works very well and our courses are equally filled with men, women and children. Its a very family orientated sport.
I'm often seen on the course with my female friend playing a round with my Dad and his male friend. How often do you see this in the UK or USA?