I watched Billy Porter Payne's news conference earlier this afternoon and got no surprises. First, Billy is going to be autocratic and hide behind the concept of a private golf club.
The issue of the practice of the lack of women members is not going away. It makes no difference to Augusta's members that a woman now holds the position of IBM's CEO. She is not going to be admitted to the Augusta National Golf Club. She will say nothing about the issue in public and if asked I am sure she can handle the question. Although, she is not a member at Augusta, she is one of the titans of American business as IBM's CEO.
One of the interesting things about Augusta is its membership. It is a private club and its membership is secret. However, one can easily guess some names. Make a list of the most powerful men in business, the law, sports, government etc. and we all know them. Pass me a Forbes magazine and I can guess them with ease. :)
When Martha Burk attempted to change the membership criteria at Augusta, the greatest revelation to me was that members' annual dues were paid by public corporations.
At Billy's presser this afternoon I could not fail to notice that a reporter with a Scottish accent asked a question about the denial of women as members. But, it was the last question that was the best whereas Billy came back at the reporter with a cute comment that he did not know the reporter's daugther. I thought to myself, how truly lucky is the reporter's daughter that she doesn't know Billy Porter Payne. Hopefully, her luck will hold true in the future too. ha ha ha :)