The Ladies Professional Golf Association veered far from the fairway with its recent dictate that its players must demonstrate by the end of next year that they can speak English - or face suspension from the tour.
It's a move so inhospitable and so counterproductive that golf fans might reasonably wonder if decision-makers at the LPGA have taken a few thwacks to the head from errant drives.
As critics of the new policy point out, the U.S-based tour is decidedly international - and for the better. Some of the LPGA's biggest names, such as Annika Sorenstam (Sweden) and Lorena Ochoa (Mexico), hail from other countries. The tour's top 20 players include seven South Koreans.
The LPGA now encompasses 26 countries and 121 foreign players. It's a trend the organization should encourage, for business reasons if nothing else. The greater the global reach, the more successful the tour becomes.
LPGA officials say the speak-English policy, which will apply to all players who've been on the tour for two years, is necessary because players "have to interact with fans and sponsors" and "need to be approachable."
But, by the tour's own admission, very few of its players cannot speak at least a little English. Wouldn't it serve the game (and America's image) better to encourage and help them to learn the basics, rather than threaten them with suspension?
No other major sports league, including men's golf, requires its players to speak English before they step onto the putting green, swing a racket, dribble a basketball or throw a pitch. But, for simplicity's sake, most foreign athletes who cannot speak English try to learn the basics, just as most Americans playing abroad try to learn the rudiments of the home language.
If LPGA officials think their new policy fosters the growth of their sport, at home or around the globe, they have their heads buried in a sandtrap.
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