Sorenstam's game is no feminist fight - that happens off the playing surface

But none of these issues bears on the competition, except to the extent that sheer force of numbers imposes its limitations on who plays when. At my club, Tuesdays and Fridays are set aside for women-only competitions; Wednesdays and Saturdays are for men-only competitions. Mondays are Open days, and men and women can play in the Ball Competitions. Thursdays are corporate days, and men and women participate in the informal competitions, if any, run by the particular organisations. On Sundays, there are separate competitions for men and women, and a medley, which all run concurrently on the course.

Interestingly, men's and women's handicapping systems are run separately, one from Mars, one from Venus! And the main reason for that, historically and contemporarily, is that Women's Golf Australia wants to keep it that way! Implicit in their attitudes and behaviour with respect to course ratings and handicapping for women is the recognition that women are not as powerful as men are when hitting the long shots.

In my view, it is long past time that our golf associations amalgamated, with women and men involved in the governance and administration, and that the amalgamated body run golf for women and men alike, equally promoting separate competitions for each cohort, with variable fees structures which will allow all members to share equally the facilities of the course and the club.

Otherwise, please let's not have the waters being muddied by the turbid thinking of any dinosaurs, including those of the female variety!