by G. Rennie
The Scottish Open teed off yesterday at the challenging Castle Stuart Golf Links at Inverness. A field of 156 golfer’s were met with a little wind, a little Scottish dew, and very little sunshine at the second running of this tourney at this lauded Gil Hanse design. Of that number how many were Scots? Only 21 of 156. It’s a bit discouraging, although not surprising to any fan who 
follows international fields, that so few Scots play the pro game. I wonder how Scots feel about the relatively low numbers of their countrymen who play this great game they gave the world. I haven’t heard much whining about it from the Scots but then Monty probably wasn’t around a microphone. It seems that there’s a growing parallel between this Scottish phenomenon and the changing demographics of the LPGA. Although the sheer numbers of lady Korean golfers don’t yet rival the U.S. ladies they outnumber them significantly in the “elite player” category. Well if Kristie Kerr and her cohorts want to rid themselves of the Korean contingent they might arrange an exodus to Scotland. Lord knows they could use some champion golfer’s over there.
Speaking of the ladies who play our benighted game, one last word on pace of play at the U.S. Women’s Open. What the hell is going on??? Watching grass grow is less tedious than watching some of these ladies. And it’s not just the time it takes for so many to pull the trigger, it’s the 
mind numbing dependency so many “gals” have on their caddies. And all these caddies are men. I thought we had a sexual revolution some 40 odd years ago and a feminist liberation movement that got the women folk out from under the thumb of the domineering male. Well, not on today’s LPGA Tour where the reliance on and deference to so many caddies by their lady bosses is just plain embarrassing . Where are Gloria Steinem and Martha Burke when you need them? Ladies, please, get on with it. You don’t need to burn your bras on the first tee to show your independence. All you need to do is to stop relying on your caddies to line you up on every shot, to convince you that you’ve got the right stick in your hand on each shot, or to review all the topographical features of the hole spread out in front of you. You’re the PRO Golfer in your relationship. Tell them to show up and shut and get to it. And if you want to burn a bra or two just for fun, that’s OK by me.
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