Men Move Over: Augusta National Finally Lets Ladies In

Oh great!  Finally women are allowed to become members of Augusta National's perfectly manicured golfing sanctuary. Now the fabled country club will be able to post pictures of former Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice whacking a golf ball and sipping on beer in the clubhouse. What a progressive place! Secretary Rice will be joined in the former all-boys club by a rich banker named Darla Moore.  A real milestone.  Pardon my sarcasm, but its hard for me to work up the necessary enthusiasm for this momentous act of "equal rights".

Condoleezza Rice

The fact is Augusta National - the home of The Masters - should have had women members years ago. Just as it should have admitted African American men to membership long before 1990.

I'm way past tired of the racist actions of the country club set that are still casually tolerated by far too many people.

Membership restrictions - "exclusive" - for those who want to use more high-minded language, though still exist at country clubs around the country.  And far too few do or say anything about it.

But it bothers me mightily to hear those who say Augusta National does things in its own way and in its own time, always giving the club a pass, because of its history and prestige.

The real test of the sincerity of all of this will be counting the number of women and minorities who are members of Augusta National 10 and 20 years from now.  I'm betting there will still be less than a dozen non-white, non-male members.