The European Tour chief made waves on Sunday by saying that women playing on the men’s tour are nothing but a gimmick. While he wouldn’t go so far as to challenge his sponsors on inviting women to their tournaments, he stated that sponsors will have to

convince us that it’s in the interests of the game by including women.

But why has women playing in men’s tournaments become such a hot-button issue? If, as often stated, they just can’t physically compete with the men, what’s the harm in letting them try? If they can’t come close to the top men on the Tour, why not let them play and bring with them the media hype that only brings more attention and players to golf?

Is it that maybe, just maybe, the men don’t want to be the first one between by a girl on the professional circuit? After all, the first man to come in second to a woman will probably be remembered as much for that as anything else in his career.