Wisconsin Girl Competing Against Boys

The Wisconsin boy’s high school golf tournament is underway in Madison and much of the focus is on a young woman named Ellie Arkin from Reedsburg. Arkin is competing against the boys because her school does not field a girl’s team. She is quite an accomplished player and fired a first round 75 at the University of Wisconsin’s home course, University Ridge. Arkin was six shots behind the first round leader. But Arkin, who has will play for the Badgers next year, is the center of a controversy because she is competing from tees that are 15 percent shorter than the boys are playing. All of that is within WIAA rules. Several years ago, a young woman from Northern Virginia named Jenny Suh won the Virginia boy’s title and the Virginia girl’s title. She also played a shorter course than the boys thus sparking a lot of debate about whether she had an unfair advantage. As the father of two daughters (neither of whom demonstrated any interest in golf) I am all for girls playing and competing. But I am not in favor of girls competing with boys or receiving nearly a 1,000 yard advantage. My question is why isn’t she competing in the girl’s tournament?

Hitting range balls while wondering whatever happened to JoAnne Carner.