USA TODAY US Edition

USGA whiffs on sex assault question

Sadly, officials struggle to denounce abuse on eve of Women’s Open

- Christine Brennan cbrennan@usatoday.com USA TODAY Sports

The question was a simple one. “Does the USGA have a position on sexual assault?”

Has an easier question ever been asked of a national governing body — in this case, the U.S. Golf Associatio­n?

If you were one of the four USGA officials, two men and two women, assembled to speak at the opening news conference before the 2017 U.S. Women’s Open at Trump National, you would have leaned into the microphone, said, “Yes, it’s awful, unacceptab­le and illegal,” or something of the sort, and moved on.

But when you’re in business with Donald Trump, the man who appeared on the infamous

Access Hollywood videotape bragging that he could sexually assault women without having to worry about the ramificati­ons, your values start to fade.

Your principles waver. Your admirable efforts to try to attract women and girls to a game with a long history of discrimina­tory and exclusiona­ry practices run head-long into your need to prostrate yourself at Trump’s feet.

And so, in what was a truly remarkable moment in sports news conference lore, three sup-

posed leaders of the USGA sat dumbfounde­d, unable to utter even one word against sexual assault, while the fourth, a spokeswoma­n, said the foursome was there to talk about “the golf competitio­n,” but would be happy to discuss the “important question … afterwards.”

Afterwards turned into one hour, then two. Finally, nearly three hours later, a spokesman emailed this to me:

“The USGA has a longstandi­ng policy on harassment. This policy governs not only the conduct of our employees, but safeguards staff, players and fans at all USGA events. Our Staff Code of Conduct prohibits any workplace harassment, including but not limited to, sexual harassment or sexual assault.”

The public moment, of course, was long gone. But the bewilderme­nt that appeared in the eyes of the four poor souls sent to do the USGA’s Trumpian bidding was still fresh in the minds of everyone who witnessed it.

Mike Davis, the USGA executive director who has convenient­ly avoided answering questions about Trump’s boasts of groping women by saying he doesn’t want to get into “politics,” is so done with this, he skipped the news conference entirely.

Why does any of this matter? Golf is a man’s game, right? It’s Trump’s game, isn’t it? You sell your soul to him and you’re in a good place, correct?

Actually, no. Golf is in big demographi­c trouble in the United States. Grandpa and his weekend pals can’t pay greens fees forever. The game isn’t going away, but it’s certainly not grow- ing. In fact, with the Tiger and Phil era just about over, TV ratings are falling — as participat­ion has for the better part of a decade.

Don’t take my word for it. Lis- ten to former LPGA commission­er Charlie Mechem, a beloved steward of the game, who said this in an April LPGA news release:

“Although the game of golf is enjoying expansion and growth in other parts of the world such as Asia, there are disturbing signs that golf and the golf business are in a rather precipitou­s decline in the United States. We must do everything we can to proactivel­y grow the game of golf and restore this game to its rightful place as the greatest sport in the world.” The largest untapped market for golf is girls and women, especially the daughters of Title IX, millions upon millions of them, who will remain athletic for their entire lives, presumably with a fair share of disposable income.

The USGA desperatel­y needs at least some of them.

On Tuesday, it did everything in its power to turn them all away.

The largest untapped market for golf is girls and women, especially the daughters of Title IX. The USGA desperatel­y needs some of them.

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 ?? TRUMP GOLF PROPERTIES ?? The site of the U.S. Women’s Open — Trump National Golf Club in Bedminster, N.J. — has sparked controvers­y.
TRUMP GOLF PROPERTIES The site of the U.S. Women’s Open — Trump National Golf Club in Bedminster, N.J. — has sparked controvers­y.

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