Off the ball: Neanderthals still kicking in golf debate

COMMENT - By RICHARD BOOCK

If anyone was wondering what happened to Homo Habilus, our stone-aged ancestors whose method of dating invariably involved a wooden club, they only had to listen to this week's clamour over women golfers.

The caveman mentality made a remarkable comeback when the issue of women playing in significant golf tournaments again raised its head.

It's extraordinary what lengths some people will go to in their anti-women tirades and yet still have the temerity to introduce their misguided thoughts with the line, "I'm not sexist but ... "

There were those who downright objected to the idea of women playing with the men, and then there were those who attempted to disguise their prejudice by taking a different tack, claiming it amounted to the exploitation of women.

That's right. As if women needed men to warn them about exploitation.

It was difficult to imagine those fatuous arguments were anything but a smokescreen for that ugliest of man: the bloke, who only views women as a sex object. What else could be behind their objections?

Exploitation? Now that's a laugh. The women who have so far caused the ruckus gained entry through a sponsor's exemption, which is specifically designed to allow the sponsor a promotional opportunity.

It's hard to imagine why allowing a woman entry could be any different from roping in Joe Montana or Shaquille O'Neal, but discrimination works in strange ways, and ours is not to question why.

One chap phoned besieged radio sportscaster Brendon Telfer and claimed that it would only be fair for women to play in men's events if men were allowed to enter women's events.

How utterly infantile. Never mind that women have their own tournaments to avoid what could be complete domination by men, just as junior grades are also protected.

There were even folk who were prepared to argue that women shouldn't be allowed to play in a major even if (and for many of them this was a gigantic "if") they one day became good enough to qualify on merit.

"I suppose a woman should be able to play for the All Blacks if she's good enough," one talkback caller jeered, and the answer was, of course, yes. I mean, why not if she's good enough?

It's not difficult to shut the eyes and dream of a world in 100 or 200 years in which women are good enough to match their male counterparts on cricket fields, golf courses, tennis courts and basketball courts.

Of course, this probably sounds like a nightmare for some of our citizens, especially those who have been brought up to view women as an unworthy sub-species, good only for titillation and producing sons.

The bad news for these sad types is that the world has moved on, women more so than ever, to the extent that they're now in control of their destiny and recognise bigotry for what it is.

As Margaret Thatcher once said: "If you want anything said, ask a man. If you want anything done, ask a woman."