Hatty Lee
UPDATE: Only English When Playing Golf
We spoke and they listened. LPGA backs down on English-only rule . Just two hours before the Asian Pacific American Legal Center and civil rights groups planned a new conference in Los Angeles, LPGA Tour commissioner announced that they will back off their discriminatory policy. It didn’t take them long to realize how ridiculous this rule is.
Editor's note: Since posting this piece, California Senator Leland Yee has started a petition to oppose the LPGA policy to require its athletes to speak English. Our organization, the Applied Research Center, has signed on. Take action and urge the LPGA to rescind the policy.
The LPGA has passed a new rule that all players are required to speak English, beginning next year, or risk suspension. Seriously? When did language become an essential part of playing golf? Or is the fact that seven of the LPGA's Top 20 players are Korean and international players have won 19 of 24 events this year — six by Lorena Ochoa of Mexico, seven by Asians.
The LPGA is drawing much criticism over this new rule. Some are questioning the legality of it as well.
This definitely seems like a bad move by the LPGA.
The NBA and baseball leagues have many international players as well, but they are not required to speak English. What would American sports look like if all the major sports associations required athletes prove that they are conversant in English?
Posted at 11:25 AM, Sep 05, 2008 in Sports | Permalink | View Comments
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Comments
Not just racism, but sexism, too. It seems a big funding source for the LPGA is the "pro-am" tournaments, where amateurs can buy an opportunity to play with the LPGA pros. I've heard that what's driving this is that some of the amateur men who play in the pro-am tournaments have been annoyed that the non-English-speaking pros aren't "entertaining" enough.
So it's the same old story you see over and over with female athletes. Women qualify to play in the LPGA not from the quality of their golf, but by being pleasing to men while they play golf. Whereas in the NBA and the baseball leagues, the (male) athletes only have to be good at playing ball. :-/
Posted by: Sanguinity | August 29, 2008 12:11 PM
crazy, crazy, crazy...
what next..rowing? cycling?
as far as i am concerned as long as you can play or do you can compete..
how many say...boxers for want of another sport can just about speak period.. let alone in discernable english? (tyson???)
fear rules again....
Posted by: marci | August 30, 2008 6:55 AM
I think that the LPGA's decision smacks of xenophobia.
At least the Beijing Olympics appointed an Esperanto translator, and CRI broadcast daily, about the Games, in this language.
If you doubt this you can check http://esperanto.cri.cn
Posted by: Brian Barker | September 5, 2008 1:11 AM