Sorry, Sergio. Gary Player’s comments about the use of performance enhancing drugs by some Tour players was, for a moment, a bigger story than the golf at the Open Championship at Carnoustie.
Now taking over those headlines is the story of Royal & Ancient official Graham Brown who made racist jokes during his speech at a dinner for the Association of Golf Writers. Those jokes made him seem both Royal and Ancient and apparently some people were offended.
Boy, where do I start with this one?
From The Guardian about Brown’s speech:
…included jokes about “Nips” and “all Japanese looking the same”, another about black caddies at Augusta and a story about two disabled golfers. The speech followed a toast proposed by the former BBC golf correspondent Tony Adamson which included a joke about a player punching his wife in the mouth.
Hilarious! Tony Adamson threw a good one in there, too. What isn’t funny about spousal abuse? I guess BBC golf correspondents aren’t expected to live up to the same high standards as R&A officials, because no one seems to be up in arms about that gem. Or maybe it’s just so embedded in golf tradition to belittle and trivialize women that no one was offended by that little nugget. I wonder – does the AGW include any female writers? Are women even allowed in that tent?
I guess it’s at least progress that people are upset about the “jokes” regarding Asian, black and disabled people. It’s probably safe to assume all the people at the butt of those “jokes” were men, hence the attention.
Wait, did I say something about “high standards” of R&A officials? Ahem.
Brown was removed as an official at the Open Championship, but not asked to resign.
So how did the R&A CEO Peter Dawson respond to the heat? From an AP story:
Dawson distanced the R&A from Brown’s jokes but said he would not be asked to resign.
“First of all, this was a private dinner. Graham was a guest invited in a private capacity and was speaking as such. He was in no way representing the R&A,” Dawson said. “We know Graham Brown very well, and I can say absolutely that he is certainly not a racist as an individual. But I have spoken to him today. He is horrified at the impression he has left and horrified at learning the effects of some of his remarks.
“The R&A would not wish to be associated with that kind of thing.”
Yeah, I bet they wouldn’t. As for Brown not being a racist, I’m not sure that argument flies. Sure, maybe you don’t have to be a stupid person to do stupid things, but I’m pretty sure you have to be a racist to make racist jokes. And what’s that part about not being a racist “as an individual?” Dawson just said Brown wasn’t representing the R&A, so what else but an individual was he when he made those remarks?
And I don’t think a “private dinner” allows for offensive remarks the same way “private clubs” can pick and choose which individuals or groups can join.
A lot has been written about golf being an elitist sport and that it has come a long way since the days of the white boys club. I think this is a big step backwards. Just because a tradition is “time honored” doesn’t make it right. That no one seems to care about the “joke” about a player hitting his wife, that the R&A seems to want to protect this bozo, and that only some people were offended proves we haven’t come far at all.
Seems like a different tournament without Wie
Or is it just me? The whole production, the vibe of the event… it all actually seems like a golf tournament instead of a circus with a sideshow.
Without Wie around, we actually got to see some footage of Jesper Parnevik at the John Deere. In fact, had he made that putt for his third birdie in a row, I was going to dub him Jesper Birdienevik. He missed it and birdied the next hole for 3 out of 4, but that didn’t cut my mustard. Three in a row, Jesper. That’s the deal.
Another fresh face is on the scene and we were treated to some coverage of this little cutie:
Philip Francis, the 18 year old amateur out of Scottsdale, AZ. Will he really play for UCLA or will he get the pro bug and bug out?
The kid looked like he was just having a blast out there. He shot 3 over in the first round with what looked like his buddy on the bag. They were all smiles and chit chatting along the way. He nailed a great second shot on 17 to give himself an eagle opportunity and both boys just looked psyched. He missed it and tapped in for birdie and they headed off to 18 as if they were just going out to hook up with some girls at the movies. Very relaxed and carefree. Not that seeing Duffy Waldorf making a run with his fancy golf balls and watching Billy Mayfair actually sink putts with that crazy stroke wasn’t interesting, but the addition of this Francis kid really brightened things up. He’s T129 and probably has to shoot under par today to make the cut. I’ll be rooting for him.
I was going to switch over to the Jamie Farr Owens Corning Classic today and watch the women play, but here on the west coast, it’s on at the same time as the John Deere. I have old school Tivos so I can only record one thing at a time. So today, both Tivos will be rolling so I can root for the kid as I bloop-bloop my way through the coverage and still not miss the women’s event.
Next post.