Speak English or go home

[osu99jp]

I didn't realize this was even legal.

The LPGA will require its member golfers to learn and speak English and will suspend their membership if they don't comply, Golfweek reported on its Web site.



According to the report, the new requirement was communicated to the tour's growing South Korean membership in a mandatory meeting at the Safeway Classic in Portland, Ore., on Aug. 20.



Players were told by LPGA commissioner Carolyn Bivens that by the end of 2009, all players who have been on the tour for two years must pass an oral evaluation of their English skills or face a membership suspension. A written explanation of the policy was not given to players, according to the report.



"Hopefully what we're talking about is something that will not happen," Libba Galloway, the tour's deputy commissioner, said of the potential for suspensions, according to Golfweek. "If it does, we wouldn't just say, 'Come back next year.' What we would do is work with them on where they fell short, provide them the resources they need, the tutoring … and when we feel like they need to be evaluated again, we would evaluate."

Every Korean player who spoke with Golfweek about the meeting came away with the understanding she would lose her tour card if she failed the test rather than face suspension, according to the report. But Korean players who spoke about the policy supported the tour's position, though some, including Se Ri Pak, felt fines would be better than suspensions.



"We agree we should speak some English," Pak said, according to the report. "We play so good overall. When you win, you should give your speech in English."



Betsy Clark, the LPGA's vice president of professional development, said a team of evaluators will assess players on communication skills including conversation, everyday survival phrases and "golfspeak." Players must be able to conduct interviews and give acceptance speeches without the help of a translator, she said, according to the report.

Galloway said the policy takes effect immediately, but that players' English proficiency would not be measured until the end of 2009, according to the report. The LPGA's membership includes 121 international players from 26 countries; 45 are South Koreans.



"This should be a priority in their professional development just the way working on their short game is a priority," Galloway said, according to Golfweek. "We just wanted to be clear about our expectations."




Angela Park, a Korean-American who was born in Brazil and speaks three languages, said it's difficult to "come to a foreign country and be yourself." She also supports the rule and says it's fair, according to the report.

"The LPGA could come out and say they only want 10 Koreans, but they're not," Park said, according to Golfweek. "A lot of Korean players think they are being targeted, but it's just because there are so many of them."



And Seon-Hwa Lee, who said she is working with an English tutor during the offseason and plans to brush up for the evaluation, thinks everyone "can do a simple interview," according to the report. Her ability to answer questions without a translator has improved during her time on the tour.



"The economy is bad, and we are losing sponsors," she said, according to the report. "Everybody understands."

[Franny]

It's not illegal. When you sign up to be part of the tour you agree to perform certain duties off the course, one of which is talking to the media. These interviews are critical to the PR success of the tour.

Not illegal, but an act of desperation.

With Michelle Wii being a huge bust, the LPGA is forced to do so stuff like this to weed out the Koreans, who aren't very interesting to anyone. I wonder if they'd do the same thing if these golfers were of Russian decent and were super hot.

[millslite]

At the end of the day, it is lady's golf and nobody cares.

The WNBA should pull a variation of this and require their players not to look like horses.