WorldGolf.com's Chris Baldwin makes an observation about the LPGA's best golfer: The No. 1 ranked player in women's golf garners all the respect of a weekend hacker playing in jean shorts from the major golf manufacturers. Lorena Ochoa does not even have a club deal.Ochoa doesn't seemed much bothered by the snub -- "What can I say? Sad. One thing I see is that they don't spend the money or put the dedication into women's golf. There are so many good players out here that deserve better. In my case, I have really good support back home, and here in the United States, it's hard to get a club deal that is worth it" -- but Baldwin points out that other, lesser talents, are making out in endorsements.
Think about that for another moment. No company pays the LPGA's best player to swing their sticks. There are no glowing press releases sent out by Ping, Callaway, TaylorMade, anybody, when Ochoa wins - and she wins more than anyone else on Tour right now.
Morgan Pressel looks like she stepped out of a Ralph Lauren commercial, and Michelle Wie is, well, Michelle Wie (even though she has yet to win anything).
But Baldwin also offers this:
You cannot help but conclude it may have something to do with the fact she's Mexican.... Ochoa suffers from dominating while Mexican.Yeah, I don't buy that. Look, the LPGA is an entirely different animal than the PGA, or most male-dominated sports, for that matter. I mean, there's 'Rule 88' for cripes sake -- something you'd never seen the the men's Tour. To suggest that Ochoa doesn't have a club deal because she's Mexican is, well, silly. She's likable, she's the best player on Tour, she's young, and she's photogenic. (And, as Baldwin notes, she has deals with Lacoste and Rolex. Yes, these are international companies, but so is Mizuno, a club manufacturer ... who has yet to offer her a deal.)
That she's from Mexico is irrelevant. Honestly, do you think young girls just getting into golf are more likely to be Natalie Gulbis fans because a she's a blond-haired, blue-eyed American? Really? How do you explain Wie, a Korean American who has yet to win anything?
Is it peculiar? Sure. But that doesn't necessarily mean there's something nefarious behind it. And if Ochoa continues to play well, all the other stuff will take care of itself. I'm just glad she seems like a good person. Maybe Wie's posse should take notes.
Hat tip: Golf Girl's Diary
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Reader Comments ( Page 1 of 1)
1. Evidently no comments either!
Posted at 4:54PM on Jun 9th 2007 by ntlconsult
2. Lorena Ochoa is a class act and a very fine person. She certainly deserves whatever any other top golfer gets as far as endorsements go. She doesn't appear to let it bother her though which speaks volumes about her character.
Posted at 7:05PM on Jun 9th 2007 by John L
3. I think their is too much tension between US and Mexico issues right now. While sad for Loreno, she will eventually prevail, if she can stay on top of her game. I believe it will probably take winning a major to solitify her number 1 ranking.
Posted at 9:46PM on Jun 9th 2007 by Steve Neuenschwander
4. Of course it is because Lorena is MEXICAN. Mexicans are supposed to be taking care of the course, not winning on the LPGA. If she was from spain, she would probably be showered in endorsments. Lorena is a class act and deep in her heart she knows the truth. The truth is better left unsaid sometimes. So don't try to make it into what it isn't. Ms. Wie isn't Mexican and she is more accepted than Lorena because of that. Ryan don't be ignorant. You wouldn't last one day in the U.S. as a Mexican. You would see that there is still plenty of racism at all degrees. I am a Mexican who is married to a white woman and she will tell you that there is plenty of racsim to go around. Wake up Ryan.
Posted at 11:40PM on Jun 9th 2007 by Tony
5. Lee Trevino had endorsements. Why should women's golf be any different?
Posted at 8:14AM on Jun 10th 2007 by Sharon Bloch
6. ??? Michelle Wie is a 17 year-old CHILD. How disgusting is it for an (apparently) white "commentator" on this blog to pretend she is "not nice?!" Michelle Wie IS nice. AND she won tournaments over grown white MEN when she was just 9 years-old. Is that the REAL problem? That here in AMERICA misogynistic men take issue with her dreaming bigger than THEY would like? Shaking my head.
Posted at 9:09AM on Jun 11th 2007 by sermon
7. Just think what it was like for the Women who are now Legends of Golf. Very few had endorsements and the prize money was small. They played for the love of the game.
Come to the First Annual Women's Golf Fantasy Camp and meet the women who paved the road for these female golfers of today.
website is: www.womensgolffantasycamp.com
Why should only the men have fantasy camps?
Posted at 5:36PM on Jun 11th 2007 by Carol Reid
8. A women's golf fantasy camp sounds like a great idea! I would love to spend time with the Women Golf Legends,listen to their stories about the LPGA Tour and play some golf with them. Count me in!
Posted at 9:06PM on Jun 11th 2007 by Bella Reid
9. It's funny that Lorena doesn't have any endorsements.
I don't think that race has anything to do with it or I would not want to think it does. It is a proven fact that the LPGA is not pushed like the PGA. Just look at the prize money per tourment.
Posted at 9:11PM on Jun 11th 2007 by lorenzo
10. We all Know, Most of the Golf course maintenace workers (you know, the ones who keep our nation's golf courses so beatiful) are "illegal" and mostly mexican. With everything going on with immigration reform... Corporate America is reluctant to put a "Mexican" face in front of them... I know that My next set of clubs and balls that I will bye for myself, wife and kids... will be from whomever endorses Lorena. Good points about Lee Trvinio and others... but times are VERY different now!
Posted at 9:05AM on Jun 12th 2007 by Juan
11. Race and ethnicity have something to do with virtually *everything* in the U.S. Gender (female) just adds another thick layer. Where most women pay once, certainly in professional sports, Ochoa is paying twice.
Posted at 3:10PM on Jun 24th 2007 by romat