LPGA & Women's Golf: Deservers More Respect

OK, it is time to talk about the ladies of golf, and YES, and the LPGA Tour deserves more respect from the male golfing sector and needs to be brought back into the limelight of being seen on TV as much as the men’s tour.  Now that I have got my position on my support of the women’s golf out of the way, let’s move on, or above, the issue.

I would say that 80% of my golf is played with women who love golf just as much, if not more, than men.  And, YES, they can and some do regularly, play better than I.  Most of the women I play with are amateurs but they take the game very, very seriously and deserve the same respect I golf as the women professionals.

But today, I want to write about the women who have taken on the daunting task of being a Professional Golfer and those who play on the LPGA.  I know a few and I have played with a few of the local women golf professional and I hope that I get to meet more and play with more of them.  Thee are many reason why I enjoy playing with them and the least of which is because unlike the men professionals I know and play with, the women professionals play form the same tees I do, the Middle tees (not the forward tee)…which makes visiting and talking during the round a little easier and keeps me for getting a nose bleed from standing way back on the tips where my men professional friends tee it up.

It is really incredible how well the women professionals I know and the women on the LPGA play.  From my beginnings of playing golf avidly some 15 years ago I have respected their skill of the game.  And seriousness…guys, Tiger may have the stalking stare as he perfectly demonstrated when he watched his nine iron settle to the bottom of the lake while finishing his final match at the Ryder Cup, but have you seen Karrie Webb’s concentration on the course.  I would ask if you have seen her eyes when she is standing at 100 yards in the middle of the fairway starring at the pin, but since she wears those cool looking sunglasses, not many people have gotten to see if she too has the stare of determination. 

We can only assume Karrie does have a serious stare since she outstanding performance this year truly makes her the LPGA Player of the Year in my book.  What an incredible performance this year and I was a supporter of Karrie every since she hit the seen and even when she was not playing as well as she is now….AND,  because I respect ANY women who can hammer 280 yards drive with a Titleist Driver as Karrie did when she was sponsored by Titleist.  (Now I got my shameless plug in for my favorite golf manufacturer, maybe they will want to be my sponsor)

There are hundreds of others of the members or the LPGA Tour I will write about over time.  Karrie is just one.  I love to watch Michelle McGann, a seasoned vet that has struggled over the past few years, But I root for because of what she is dealing with health wise…  yes, I like the underdogs…Se Ri Pak, I like to see her smile now and coming back so strong with a new attitude.  And the rookies, I am keeping an eye on… I am sure we will see them kicking it up a notch soon.  And I can only hope that Michelle Wie will take some time off and enjoy her youth.  Life is a long road and missing being a kid will come back to haunt ya when you get older.

The women professionals I have had the pleasure of playing with are just as serious at Karrie Webb which putting all of he amateurs and professional women together makes me feel that women can focus better than the men.  But, I am not here to debate who is better, the women or the men, I am here to write about women needing to be respected for their ability to play the game and play it well.

So, what is it that I like about the way women play and why do I feel they need the same respect as men players.  Well, other than all of them dress better that the men, and they are not all consumed in how many beers they can drink or how far they can flip a cigar butt, I like their swings.  Yes, I like the way they represent GOLF and he mechanics of golf.   They all seem to set their goal on every swing to finish the seeing no matter if it was a bad swing or not.

And Women display a consistent style and profession image, even in the amateur ranks, that is good for Golf.  And that to me is why I respect what the women are doing for golf.  Bringing back a clean image is what I support, and not the over the top fashions that the young members of the LPGA are being paid to wear.

All of the women professionals I have had the pleasure to play with and watch have a perfect tempo in their swing.  (Now, I know I have lost most non-golfers who are still reading so for you, Tempo is the pace of the swing of the club.)  To me, the tempo has a lot to do with the ability to make solid contact.

Kathy Farrer, a LPGA member and who was part of the founding group of the LPGA, who is a very close friend, told me during one of my rounds of golf with her, she said  “you can get just as much distance out of a slower swing speed if you catch the ball square in the clubface as you would if you had a greater swing speed and caught the ball off center.  The chances of hitting the ‘sweet spot’ of the club face with a higher swing speed is far less than if you just slowed down, and concentrated on hitting the back side of the ball with center of the club face.”  And Kathy not only tells ya, she shows ya…again, gaining my respect (and also another women who can hammer a Titleist Driver…hint, hint..)

My friend Leah Berst, teaching professional here in Dallas for over 20 years and who I have had the privilege of taking a lesson from, told me, she said “the reason women swing the club fluidly and with a seemingly slower tempo is that their flexibility is greater and what seen as a slower tempo is actually a longer swing” .  And she is absolutely correct and since then I look at that particular portion of the swing and the women professionals do produce a larger swing arch when they hit the ball.

These are just a couple of examples from a couple of the ladies who are out there teaching golf and there literally thousands of other women who are all leading the way for more women to get out and learn this wonderful game of a lifetime.

I have a wonderful opportunity of getting to play with my wife and my daughter for the rest of my life.  That is just one perk of learning to play golf as it truly is the only sport that you can play for the rest of your life and getting to play with your wife is special for me and I am sure to others true men like me who support women’s golf.

Professional, supporting women’s golf is among one of the most important things of what I do and whatever door I can help knock down for the women that is in the way of them being respected for their ability to play golf, they can count on me to help.

So, lets show the women the respect they are due, lets get the LPGA Tour back in the limelight of golf so more men and women can watch the women professionals play golf as much as we get to see the men and lets all tee it up and have some fun on the golf course together. 

Let me know how I can help.

 

Scot Duke,  President of Innovative Business Golf Solutions, provides over 31 years of corporate management experience to helping small businesses improve their marketing strategies. As author of: How To Play Business Golf, Mr. Duke outlines the steps to sucessfully using golf as a business tool.  To learn more about Mr. Duke, IBGS or to purchase How To Play Business Golf visit  www.innovativebusinessgolf.com