Martha Burke Chooses the Right Shot, but has Poor Execution

In a editorial released on huffpost.com in the wee hours of Monday, Oct. 31, 2016, Martha Burke, Director of Corporate Accountability Project for the National Council of Women’s Organizations, said “Pressure is mounting on the United States Golf Association to move next year’s Women’s U.S. Open away from the Trump-owned Bedminster club in New Jersey.”

You may recall the many, many racist, misogynistic, misinformed, disingenuous, and just plain wrong things GOP candidate for president, Donald Trump, has said over the pass year. You may also recall that a few weeks ago, a tape was released in which Trump indicated he could sexually assault women because he is famous.

Playing the largest women’s golf tournament on the planet at a golf course owned by the largest, and certainly most famous, misogynist on the planet would seem to be a bad idea. Why would you give more money to a man who clearly has a problem with women whom he deems to be less than beautiful, who are not related to him, or who dare to challenge him in any way?

And while I agree with Ms. Burke that the USGA should move the tournament immediately, her characterization of the players, most of whom do not want to get in the middle of controversy and have stated they don’t have a problem with playing the Trump course, as “good little girls,” and claiming “None of these women got where they are today by being shrinking violets on the course. But they’ve no doubt had to bend to the will of the guys who run golf” in terms of their careers.

You may recall Ms. Burke once took on Augusta National for not having any female members and called on the players of the PGA TOUR to boycott the Masters in protest. You may also recall that not one player did, and in fact, most of them said Augusta has a right, as a private club, to admit whomever they choose. And they were right.

It is worth noting that since that protest in 2002, Augusta has admitted female members, but it was not under pressure from Martha Burke nor from the players of the PGA TOUR.

My problem with Ms. Burke’s latest protest is her choice of tactics and her characterization of the players.

Women’s golf is nowhere near as popular as men’s. While I have no idea why that is, it is the fact. It is also a fact that this is true for most sports. The WNBA is a footnote to the NBA. There are no major leagues for baseball, football, or hockey for women. And even at the collegiate level, where Title 9 is the law, sports are the place where the boys play and watch the boys play. Is it right? No. Is it what it is? Yes. Can we change it? Maybe.

But what we mustn’t do is claim that every woman on the LPGA Tour has had to sacrifice her own dreams or desires because a man told her she had to. We don’t know what every woman on tour has had to endure or ignore on her way to the LPGA Tour. Is it possible Ms. Burke is right? It certainly is, but without some evidence that she has spoken to even a majority of the players, investigating their backgrounds, she has no business making such a strong statement about their personal histories.

Players on the LPGA Tour are independent contractors and have their own brands which they must protect. I agree that they should speak up about moving the championship, but only if they agree that it should be moved and only if they want to say something. At the end of the day, the publicity hit might not be worth the effort of standing up to the USGA or Trump. Keep in mind, Trump has sought to defame Ms. Universe winners, journalists, and women who have come forward to support the claims made by other women that he assaulted them.

There is more on the line for these players than a golf tournament. They have their own lives to think about, and their careers.

It seems hypocritical to accuse men of controlling the careers of these players and then admonish the same players for not doing what Ms. Burke feels is right. It’s not her career in the limelight. She stands to lose nothing if the tournament is moved or not.

The players, on the other hand, stand to lose much in a world where they cannot afford to lose anything. Women’s golf doesn’t need bad press.

I agree with Ms. Burke on the principle that the tournament should be moved. But rather than calling names and firing shots at the players, maybe a better approach would be to talk to the players and explain to them why them lending their support to moving the tournament is the right thing to do.

Cover Image via Flickr