Women’s golf: Cracking down on Koreans

The LPGA recently ignited a firestorm when it announced that its players would have to become proficient in English by the end of 2

It was an appalling idea in any language, said John Garrity in Golf.com. The LPGA recently ignited a firestorm when it announced that its players would have to become proficient in English by the end of 2009, or risk suspension. “They need to be great performers on and off the course,” said one official, “and being able to communicate effectively with sponsors and fans is a big part of this.” Officials didn’t say so directly, but their edict clearly targeted the Asians who now dominate women’s golf. Of the 121 international players on this year’s tour, 45 are South Korean, and the LPGA is upset that they’re so ... well, inscrutable. “They win our tournaments,” the thinking goes, “smile for the cameras, mumble ‘very happy, thank you,’ and then drive off.” These limited language and social skills don’t exactly endear the Koreans to sponsors or corporate executives “who pay thousands to play in a pro-am” with them. After widespread outrage, the LPGA last week rescinded its threat to suspend non–English speakers. But the Korean players could still risk fines.

Koreans are hardly the first foreign women on the tour, said Jim McCabe in The Boston Globe. So why the big problem? The LPGA never chastised “Anika Sorenstam for speaking Swedish or Patricia Meunier-Lebouc for speaking French.” Maybe the issue isn’t really language but race. “Shocking? Yes,” said Hank Gola in the New York Daily News. “Surprising? Not really.” In its obsession with marketing women’s golf, the LPGA is also trying to downplay the presence of lesbians on the tour and golf’s popularity among gay women. So to win over men, the league is heavily promoting such comely, all-American players as Natalie Gulbis, Paula Creamer, and Morgan Pressel. The quiet, self-effacing Korean players just don’t fit into that pinup girl picture.

Subscribe to The Week

Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

SUBSCRIBE & SAVE
https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/flexiimages/jacafc5zvs1692883516.jpg

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

Sign up
To continue reading this article...
Continue reading this article and get limited website access each month.
Get unlimited website access, exclusive newsletters plus much more.
Cancel or pause at any time.
Already a subscriber to The Week?
Not sure which email you used for your subscription? Contact us