After Atalanta

Saw just a little bit of the US Women's Open yesterday and had seen the headlines about Paula Creamer making a strong run toward her first major title . But she has, um, choked in the past. And I am not a huge fan of Creamer anyway (way too much pink!) so I opted to get to my softball game on time and miss her winning putt on 18. I do admire her comeback from injury and playing with a thumb that is only at 60 percent (how do people figure these things out anyway?) and the way she kept her cool in the last round. Still--she wears all that pink and seems a little too sickly sweet. But I imagine the LPGA must just be nearly orgasmic with Creamer's win. A white woman wins a major and it's the US Open. (That's two majors in a row; Cristie Kerr won the LPGA Championships last month.) She speaks fluent English, looks very heterosexual, and has that pretty and winning thing going for her (versus someone like Natalie Gulbis). I mean just look at the head shots of her from the O...

In a move that truly indicates just how reactionary and afraid for their image the LPGA tour is, the powers-that-be announced the other day that tour players will all have to speak English within two years or face suspension. Newcomers to the tour get no grace period. It doesn't seem to be a secret that the new rule is aimed at large contingent of South Koreans (but also other players from Asian countries). Learning English is considered part of a player's "professional development" says an LPGA rep. The AP story I read this morning in my local paper and the one linked above both quote South Koreans, including Hall of Famer Se Ri Pak, saying that the new rule is a good thing for the tour. Though Pak believes players not passing the exam should be fined--not suspended. I was surprised that no one was registering any complaint. Christina Kim said the policy was a little surprising but that she believes 99 percent of the players support it. I was able to find, before I ...