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Augusta faces female member decision

Could Augusta National be about to hand its first green jacket to a woman? © PA Photos

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A conflict of existing traditions at The Masters could lead Augusta National to admit its first ever female member ahead of this year's event.

Ginni Rometty is the recently appointed CEO of electronics firm IBM, one of the three key sponsors (along with Exxon and AT&T) of The Masters each year.

The CEOs of each company are usually invited to the tournament as members in order to experience the event along with their clients from a privileged position, and Rometty is the first woman to take the high-ranking position at either three companies.

Augusta National has never previously admitted a female member, a state of affairs that has frequently attracted strident criticism from equality groups.

"They have a dilemma on many levels," Marcia Chambers, senior research scholar in law and journalist in residence at Yale University Law School, told Bloomberg. "If there's been a tradition of certain CEOs, then they should look at this new CEO in the same way. The only thing that makes her any different is her gender."

Membership, and the famous green jacket that comes with it, is notoriously difficult to secure, and has been a subject of controversy in recent years - with the first black member only permitted in 1990, and a protest against the lack of female representation affecting the early stages of the 2003 tournament.

Augusta National has always been resistant to change, although current chairman Billy Payne - who led Atlanta's successful bid for the 1996 Olympic Games - is regarded as more progressive than many of his predecessors.

"Billy Payne, with his history of inclusion and his role with the Olympics, of all people, should finally take the plunge," Chambers said. "This is a good opportunity for him to do it."

However, there is a fear that the committee will use technicalities to avoid giving Rometty the same treatment as those before her, hiding behind rules to avoid making her a formal member. The few membership details made public indicate all IBM CEOs since its relationship with The Masters began have been offered green jackets.

"It's a private club, and I don't think they're really concerned about how others perceive them," Patrick Rishe, a sports business professor at Webster University in St. Louis, said, adding the committee could be "clever in terms of the language they use and their rule books" to avoid a clear decision.

"Their ratings will not rise and fall based on how people view this particular topic. Their ratings will rise and fall if Tiger Woods is at the top of his game, if Tiger and Phil Mickelson and Rory McIlroy or some combination of them happen to be in the mix on the final day of the tournament."

Ginetty's predecessor at IBM, Sam Palmisano, serves on Augusta's tournament technology committee.

The first black member to be admitted, Ron Townsend, was extended his invitation in similar circumstances. Townsend was president of the television company Gannett Co. at the time of his watershed invitation.

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