“The women are every bit as good as the men”: a postfeminist critique of LPGA players’ quest for equity in golf

Abstract

ABSTRACT This study featured a survey of 32 LPGA athletes and follow-up interviews. We employed a postfeminist critique, highlighting the contradictions of modern feminism in a patriarchal, capitalist society . Findings reflected the athletes’ conflicting views on their place in the sports world. They noted the hegemonic masculinity that has always existed in sports and media coverage of sports, but some viewed this as a problem for individual women rather than for the LPGA collectively. Some respondents said the LPGA did not need to take action as a whole, when such action clearly would benefit them. Some accepted women’s bodies as a commodity to be traded in the sports marketplace. Some responses revealed ugly racism toward Asian players. Overall, the women’s words raised questions and reflections on how to respond to structural sexism in sports, why the women believe they are treated unequally to men, and how to improve media coverage of women’s golf by humanizing players. We also make recommendations on how an intersectional approach to the sport might improve its revenue, media treatment, and quell racist attitudes. We acknowledge that real change will require institutional responses to these problems.