Wednesday, March 15, 2017

What woman would actually want to be a member of a club like Muirfield?

The historic Muirfield golf club in Scotland finally dragged itself, kicking and screaming, into the 21st century when it voted this week to admit female members.
The vote, which required a two-thirds majority to be enacted, saw just over 80% of the current (male) members vote to allow women to become members of the prestigious club, which was established as an all-male preserve back in 1744. A similar vote last year resulted in just 64% in favour of allowing women through the door, but then the R&A (the organization that organizes the British Open championship) slapped a ban on the club, stripping it of eligibility to host the Open.
Clearly, the club could not see the main money-spinner in its golfing year walk away, so please don't think that the wealthy denizens of the Muirfield clubhouse have suddenly had a change of heart and seen the moral error of their ways - this was a purely commercial decision. And bear in mind that 20% of them still don't want women members, regardless of the Open ban.
Which leads me to question what woman would actually want to become a member of such a club. It seems to me that the optimal outcome would be for the club to retain its new pro-women rule, but for no women to actually join it.

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