Posted 4/14/03 9:57 am ET

Both sides adamant on women's issue

National defends men-only policy in face of protests

Martha Burk is chairwoman of the National Council of Women's Organizations. File/AugustaChronicle

By John Boyette
The Augusta Chronicle

Tiger Woods dominated the game of golf for the first six months of 2002.

He won the Masters Tournament and the U.S. Open to become the first player to win both events in the same year since 1972, and his relationship with Swedish model Elin Nordegren made news all over the world.

But before he could make his way to the British Open and a shot at winning the third leg of the Grand Slam - a quest that was derailed by a third-round 81 at Muirfield - Woods had to take a back seat to a story that is still going strong.

With a single letter addressed to Masters and Augusta National Golf Club Chairman Hootie Johnson, Martha Burk touched off a firestorm by urging the home of the Masters to open its membership to women.

Johnson issued a terse, three-paragraph response to Burk, the chairwoman of the National Council of Women's Organizations. Then Johnson took Burk's letter public - releasing it to the media - and said that the all-male club would not change at the "point of a bayonet."

Burk says the club has done her group a favor by making the issue such a prominent topic.

"Making sex discrimination in the halls of power is a far greater accomplishment than having the door open to one woman," she said. "If he had done that quietly and discreetly, we would not have been able to elevate the dialogue."

The situation escalated, with Burk calling on corporate America to drop its support of the tournament. Johnson retaliated by telling the Masters sponsors - IBM, Coca-Cola and Citigroup - that he would not request their participation for the 2003 telecast. CBS, which has broadcast the Masters since 1956, was pressured by Burk to not air the tournament, but refused to drop the telecast. The tournament will air commercial-free.

"Our club has historically enjoyed a camaraderie and kindred spirit that we think is the heart and soul of our club. And that makes it difficult for us to consider change," Johnson told The Augusta Chronicle in November. "Now a woman could very well, as I've said before, become a member of Augusta. But that is some time out in the future. And in the meantime, we'll hold dear our traditions, and our constitutional right, to choose and to associate."

Johnson, who took over as chairman at Augusta National in 1998, has been a progressive leader. During his tenure, sweeping changes to both the course and the player qualifications for the Masters have been instituted.

And he remains steadfast in his belief that Augusta National has done the right thing.

"What we're really missing here is that single-gender organizations are good. And we're one of them," he said. "I mean the Boy Scouts, the Girl Scouts, the Junior League, Smith College, sororities, fraternities. All good.

Hootie Johnson is Chairman of the Augusta National Golf Club, home of the Masters. File/AugustaChronicle

"I mean, this woman throws out discrimination and bigotry. And the press has jumped all over that and that's what they try to put on Augusta National," he said. "It's totally unfair. We're a single-gender club, and we're happy to associate ourselves with those organizations I just enumerated."

Numerous other groups have joined the fray since last summer and have promised to show up during Masters Week to either protest the club's all-male membership or to show support for Augusta National.

Richmond County Sheriff Ronnie Strength said all Masters demonstrators must protest at a pre-selected site, a 5-acre tract in front of Savannah West Apartments on Washington Road near the club's front gates. He cited safety concerns in denying requests to protest in front of the golf club.

Burk's organization was among the groups that sued the city over its protest ordinance, claiming the revised law violates the First and Fourteenth amendments.

Burk has softened her stance since the United States has gone to war against Iraq, but still plans to protest during the Saturday of tournament week.

"If the tournament goes forward we will be there," she said in March. "I did say the tone and perhaps the size could change depending on national events. I have always said we will go forward."

Two Augusta National members - Thomas Wyman and John Snow - resigned their memberships over the issue. Wyman, a former chairman and chief executive of CBS, was a member at the club for 25 years. He died in January after a brief illness.

Snow, President Bush's nominee for treasury secretary, stepped down after his selection. He is the chairman of the transportation and railroad conglomerate CSX.

Golfers have remained quiet on the issue for the most part, although Woods was singled out by The New York Times to lead a player boycott of the Masters.

"Would I like to see women members? Yes, that would be great, but I am only one voice," Woods said last fall on his Web site. "I'm not even a regular member, I'm an honorary member, and it's going to take a lot more than me, a women's group or the media for Augusta to change its policy."

No players have declined invitations to the Masters over the issue.

Burk also has been critical of the PGA Tour, which does not hold events at courses that exclude members based on sex or race. The Masters is not an official PGA Tour event, although the money earned by players at the tournament counts toward the official money list.

"The PGA Tour is the most hypocritical organization in this mix, bar none," Burk said. "They have abdicated their own written principle to accommodate Augusta National Golf Club. They have made a mockery against their own policy. The fig leaf of claiming this is not an official event fools no one."

Reach John Boyette at (706) 823-3337 or jboyette@augustachronicle.com.

 

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