Golf and Presidential Politics

Does it matter to some voters --- at least to some golfing voters --- whether a presidential candidate plays golf?

I must admit that, as an avid golfer, my perception of certain people (and perhaps even my affinity for them) can be influenced by whether they golf. Though votes likely do not turn solely on "golfer-status," I think frequent golf references or golf outings by a candidate could, in various subtle ways, influence the public's general perception of the candidate. Less clear is whether this would be a positive or a negative for candidates. More than 26 million people golf, so the "golfers' vote" could be potent. But, of course, the politics of golf and the perception of golfers is surely influenced by the long-standing (and often accurate) perception of golf as an exclusive, exclusionary, rich, old, white man's game.

In a related vein, who do you think Tiger Woods would support were he to vote in a democratic primary? Who do you think he'd vote for in the general election?

Promoting women's pro golf

Though Michelle Wie has the potential to transform how people think about women's professional golf, she will likely do so primarily by playing with the men at their tournaments. For this reason and others, I've always wonder whether anyone has thought about staging men's and women's pro golf events on the same course at the same time. Strange as this may sound for golf, this is essentially how tennis runs its major events, and many other sports (e.g., ice skating, track and field) have men's and women's competitions in the same setting at essentially the same time.

Though it may be logistically challenging to get all the early rounds played before the fields gets cut, I think it would be fascinating to see women playing at Augusta (from moved up tees) during the same week that the men are playing the Masters. The women would not be competing directly against the men, but we would get to see their skills tested in the same setting and under similar conditions (although a shorter course) that test the men.

In terms of promoting women's golf, I think this could be great (or at least very interesting). The many fans who attend the event and/or watch on TV would get to see coverage (and the impressive skills) of many women golfers. Of course, I can imagine lots of reasons why the PGA and the LPGA would not like such a combined event, but I think it would be nice to see it tried at least once.

Phil Mickelson

After 19 months out of the winner circle, Phil is finally back, looking fit and more at peace after his wife Amy survived a very difficult pregnancy. Phil won the Bob Hope Classic in a playoff to the very solid Skip Kendall.

michelle wie

Michelle Wie has become the youngest player to ever play in a PGA event on the men's tour. This child prodigy is only 14 years old (though 6 foot tall) and in her first year of high school, yet she is competing at the Sony Open against some of the best male professional golfers in the world.

Don't think this is just a gimmick. Michelle can drive the ball over 300 yards, which some of the men on the tour can't even do. (Tiger Woods challenged her to a driving contest after meeting her for the first time last week and noticed that she's taller than he.) Her swing fundamentals are so technically sound that they make me envious (nobody should be that good, at least not if so young). Today, she shot a very respectable 72, which is 2 over par. She scored better than 29 male professional golfers, and tied the reigning PGA champion Shaun Micheel! Whether or not she makes the cut won't matter to me. She's already proven to me that she has the greatest promise of any golfer out there right now, either on the men's or women's tour. One day she may even have a greater impact on golf than Tiger. I know that's hard to believe, and, as a huge Tiger fan, it's hard for me to admit, but there's no denying her talent. She's that good.

UPDATE: In her second round, Michelle shot an impressive 68, 2 under par, but missed making the cut by just 1 stroke. She did beat 48 male professional golfers, including the young guns Adam Scott and Hunter Mahan and likes of veterans Craig Stadler and John Cook. Her overall score of even par tied the likes of (1) the reigning US Open Champion Jim Furyk, (2) the reigning British Open Champion Ben Curtis, (3) the reigning NEC World Golf Champion Darren Clark, and (4) Kenny Perry, who won 3 times last year and was in contention for player of the year. Wow.

So I rest my case, but with one small revision. If Michelle continues on her current trajectory, she will have a greater impact on golf than Tiger. Her goal is to play in the Masters golf tournament, perhaps the most prestigious of all the majors but traditionally only for the men. Based on what I've seen, you better not bet against her. She has all the tools and talent to break down the male barrier in golf.