Mr. Carter suggested it might be wise for the LPGA and the LET to look at women's tennis, where women and men play their respective Grand Slam tournaments at the same event. As a result, in tennis the large disparities in earnings have been eliminated and the profile of the women's game has risen to equal that of the men's.
The post provoked a spirited discussion across the golf blogosphere and on Twitter, where even former British Open Champion, Karen Stupples weighed in.
And we'll pick up on the topic tonight on "Only Two Things" , discussing the popularity of the two sports... and their best moves to ensure a healthy future. We'll have a couple of interesting (and interested) guests checking in with us, and we'd love to have you join the conversation too... on-air... by using our call-in number, which is: 917-889-9592. Or, weigh in at the chat room or on Twitter... or just have a listen on the Sport City Chefs network at Blog Talk Radio. We'll be live from 9:30 - 10:30 ET.
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ReplyDelete".....women and men play their respective Grand Slam tournaments at the same event."
SIMULATANEOUSLY !
i think it is important to add that because the events in tennis happen side-by-side or in the finals, alternate on the same stage
if you have ever attended the USOpen in the Arthur Ashe Stadium you will know there is no where to hide, making for very compelling competition, even theater (cue connors and mcenroe, then chrissy and navratalova) - love means nothing in tennis - show me the money ! now that's entertainment !
women in golf are just as mechanical (although nicer to look at) than the men at the touring pro level and to contrast and compare the two together would be an episode of "meet the stepfords"
anyway that's what i think
frankD
ftliquordale soFLA
That's a great point Frank. Logistically of coursed, it would be difficult to stage golf that way... but not impossible, right? I attended Roland Garros a couple of times and it was indeed compelling and exciting. What Karen Stupples proposed in a tweet to Iain Carter was a bit more controversial: an out-and-out mixed tournament, "45 men 45 women. Alternating groups of men and women. Men's yardage, women's yardage. No cut, place according to score all one division not separate." Imagine that? ;-,
ReplyDeleteThe fact that the prize money is equal in the tennis grand slam events should be motivation enough for every female golfer to lobby for a move in that direction.
ReplyDeleteIf I understand it right, women's tennis is more popular than men's tennis, and men's golf is more popular than women's golf. Overall which of the two sports is most popular?
ReplyDeleteThis would be very very bad for the LPGA despite playing from shorter tee's you have to consider that the PGA's easiest courses are set up harder than the Women's U.S. Open course and these women have never played on greens as fast or rough as deep as the men play week in and week out.
ReplyDeleteSo consequently you have your men's winner at 10 to 20 strokes under par and your womens winner at even to 10 strokes over par which would only hurt your argument for equal prize money!
Great idea to stage them simultaneously.
ReplyDeleteChristian
The Tennis Emporium
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ReplyDeletepatricia,
the male ego, delicate as it is, would not endure such a combination
in tennis the women don't "compete" directly with men, of course, but do however exhibit their talents on the same "shared" stage at a very high level of their own
in golf the women would be "competing" against themselves, against the course, and against the men - and we all saw the hissy fit dinosauria like v j singh et al had over the whole hartford woman pro whatley thing with the men - and she played from the mens tees !!
my personal solution is to play with increasingly athletic, young, spry and supple, college-level women, who are expected to have a better game than mine, me being an old-timer, and allow myself a few foozles as it were
as i supply the alcohol and pick-up all tabs, the whole thing works out fairly evenly, as i find willing partners regularly as well as quite a few repeaters, as their scheduling allows
fore !
frankD
ft liquordale so FLA
What is really eye-opening is to look at the women who won the most $$ last year and look at the PGA earnings total. Huge difference.
ReplyDelete.
ReplyDeleteduck64,
the difference IMHO is amortization
a touring pro can have a 40 year career but as we see with annika when nature calls the women must succumb and bow out during their most productive years and so far only inkster has had continuned success comming back afterwards in middle age
the extensive travel is the problem
the NYTs front page illustrated the sabbatinis some time ago, featuring them and others in utilizing mobile home vehicles on the american pro tour
amortization ? if i am an advertiser i readily see my investment can yield benefits over a predictably longer time with men - hence i will pay a premium since even if the endorsement contract runs out that player may still be seen as endorsing my product
of course, that backfired for hertz, as i still see OJ and arnie running through airports (insert your own TSA airport security joke here)
now unless annika announces she is having tiger's love child i don't see the LPGA pros benefiting financially the way the women tennis pros do
BTW a woman tennis pro is in her "prime" between 13 and 21 years of age, which also makes a big difference to advertisers
anyway that's what i think
frankD
ftliquordale soFLA
I know you mentioned a very valid reason for the difference between the male side of things and female. Many other factors at play also.
ReplyDeleteHi Frank. You mentioned the advertisers and the youthful tennis players. Most of the sponsors (and ad spots) deal with products that would appeal to people quite a bit beyond the age of the players. The LPGA has a great commisioner and as the economy settles on firmer ground, I think the LPGA will be on an upswing in the coming decade.