Annika's big adventure: Larry Elder sets record straight on PGA, LPGA gender policies, Sorenstam..

WorldNetDaily.com ^ | Thursday, May 29, 2003 | Larry Elder

[JohnHuang2]

Thursday, May 29, 2003

Quote of the Day by Lizavetta

[goldstategop]

The reason Annika Sorenstam pulled it off without NOWs or Martha Burk's help is she's a professional golf player. A fact that's lost on the feminazis. One can always admire women of genuine accomplishment. But those who need to whine to get in to the big leagues? I don't think I'll have a cup of tea with them.

[Jeff Chandler]

>>Hey, if a female pitcher for the New York Yankees can throw a 95-mile-an-hour fastball, imagine the attendance. <<

In the first place, the way for a woman to break into professional baseball is to develop a knuckleball, and if she did break into the bigs, it would be with the Dodgers.

[TomB]

Another "bleeding heart liberal" weighs in.

[NittanyLion]

Still, Sorenstam beat 11 other men, and displayed poise, class and a sense of humor.

Yep. While her talents may never equal the average male golfer, athletes in any sport could take an example from her conduct. She seems to be a very classy lady.

[q_an_a]

Larry Elder is hardly a liberal. Do a search on his other articles. He makes good points and I think Anika got lucky that she could play at the Colonial.

Any other tournament course is longer by 300 yards which would have added greatly to her problems and score. She is a good golfer capable of playing in the middle of the mens tour on some golf courses, not Augusta not the OPEN. Elder's comments are thought provoking not liberal.

[wi jd]

In the first place, the way for a woman to break into professional baseball is to develop a knuckleball, and if she did break into the bigs, it would be with the Dodgers.

Wouldn't it be more appropriate for a female to break into the bigs with the Phillies?

[trebb]

The reason Annika Sorenstam pulled it off without NOWs or Martha Burk's help is she's a professional golf player.

Do ya reckon that the fact she's married, and apparently happily, has anything to do with the difference? Annika never set out to "dis the men", it was a personal challenge. While I don't think she really belonged there, I think her admission that she (the worlds best female golfer) was over her head on a course that gave her the best opportunity for success, will be a good thing and prevent any real "movements" from trying to subvert the game.

Remember the "uproar" when that guy with the physical problems got legal permission to ride a cart? Where is he now, and do you remember his name? Exactly, he's a non-issue because he wasn't really competative...

[mountaineer]

She is a good golfer capable of playing in the middle of the mens tour on some golf courses

I agree, because a golfer is competing against the course much more than against any other golfer. This distinguishes Annika's appearance at the Colonial (or at any PGA event) from the Billie Jean King vs. Bobby Riggs-type of situation. It's not mano a mano, as it would be if a woman were on the pitcher's mound at Dodger Stadium or trying to defend a Tim Duncan hook shot.

My husband and I golf together, and I frequently hit from the same tees as he. Whether I score better does not depend on how well he plays, only on how well I handle each hole of the course on that particular day.

[presidio9]

Still, Sorenstam beat 11 other men, and displayed poise, class and a sense of humor.

Sure, we all love Larry, because he's black and conservative. But if he's remarking on how she accomplished something by somehow "beating" 11 guys, he's showing he does not understand professional golf. Annika showed that she is not capable of competing with men because she is not capable of making birdies. She was playing not to win or compete, but only in persuit of making the cut. Tour players who sought only to make the cut every week would quickly starve, as they are responsible for their own expenses. Everyone who missed the cut got paid nothing for their efforts. All eleven guys that she "beat" had several birdies. They were taking risks, trying to shoot low scores. She had two. She was trying to shoot par.

The best analogy is to Olympic downhill skiing. These guys are all so good, that the only way for most of them to win is to take the most risk and get away with it. Litterally, the guy who skis closest to the edge without wiping out wins. In a tournament like this, the guy who throws up the most birds is going to end up winning. Bogeys are few and far between on such an easy course. Kenny Perry had 21 birdies and an eagle over the four days. If any of the eleven guys Sorenstam "beat" had any interest in competing with her, instead of against the course and the field, they would have no problem doing so. But it wouldn't have done them any good. She missed the cut by four strokes. And these guys are trying to put food on the table, not be the male champion in a goofy battle of the sexes.

And if it wasn't a battle of the sexes, how come apologists keep pointing to those 11 guys she "beat"?

[daylate-dollarshort]

Slightly off point here, but on the previous threads involving this subject, there was speculation expressed about whether or not Annika might have had a little help "bulking up".

I don't know whether she has utilized "help" or if she simply used a traditional method, however I still have my suspicians.

If women's desire to compete with men in any professional sport encourages the use of steroids and/or growth hormones it should be discouraged. Not only for reasons of health, but asthetics. I already have suspicion that it is going on in women vs. women already.

As imoressionable as young women are today, do we really want women to look like this??

< /sarcasm >

[jaime1959]

Annika deserves praise as a warrior who put it on the line as a personal challenge. If she flamed out, she not only would have made herself look bad, she would have damaged an already shaky LPGA. The fact that she played as well as she did the first day in the circus atmosphere and undercurrent of hostility from some of the more small-minded men golfers was amazing. That she did so with the utmost class and grace speaks volumes about her character.

Unlike female firefighters or armed service personnel who compete under “gender-normed” rules, Annika played under the same rules, from the same tees as the men. She did so under a sponsor’s exemption, which are given out at the sponsor’s sole discretion and are frequently dispersed for personal or sentimental reasons. In this case, the Colonial sponsors were extremely shrewd in giving her an exemption: attendance soared, as did TV ratings on the USA Network, which covered the first two days.

She didn’t go to court, or try to gin up controversy in the court of public opinion like the she-hag Martha Burke, so comparisons to the feminazis and similar activist groups are totally irrelevant.

There was no chance she would win, and only a slight chance she would make the cut. Doesn’t matter. She wanted to test herself against the best under tournament conditions and she did. I think she performed like a champion.

[Howlin]

Somehow, someway, Sorenstam pulled this off without NOW's Kim Gandy or the National Council of Women's Organizations' Burk.

*Whack*

[discostu]

The Annika thing and the cripple thing were vastly different. Annika was perfectly within the existing rules and was testing herself, it might or might not have any lasting effect. The gimp was the courts deciding sports can't write their own rules, by setting this legal precident it WILL have a lasting effect and a very bad one at that.

[Thommas]

There was no chance she would win, and only a slight chance she would make the cut. Doesn’t matter. She wanted to test herself against the best under tournament conditions and she did. I think she performed like a champion.

This is the best synopsis offered by anyone; succinctly summerizing Larry's screed. ;=)

[Scenic Sounds]

Fellow LPGA player Juli Inkster likens Sorenstam to Woods, "She's the Tiger Woods of our tour. If Tiger had a 'next level' to go to, I bet he would do it. I think she's one who always wants to challenge herself and see how she stacks up against the best. The men are the best."

I like this analyzis.

[an amused spectator]

But if he's remarking on how she accomplished something by somehow "beating" 11 guys, he's showing he does not understand professional golf.

You may say that I do not understand professional golf, but I don't think Annika did it for publicity reasons in any way, shape or form. I think Annika wanted to find out if she could play golf with the men. I think she found out she did credibly.

[tangerine]

Sorenstam doesn't need to bulk up to play better. She tested herself and found out her long game was highly competitive (long AND!! on the fairway) - but her short game was not.

How much "bulk" does it take to cut a stroke on each of say 9 out of 18 greens?

[TomB]

Larry Elder is hardly a liberal. Do a search on his other articles.

I was being sarcastic. That is why I put "liberal" in quotes.

[TomB]

Wow. That was VERY well put.