LPGA Eye Candy: Good or Bad? |
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Among the pressing issues being discussed this week are, of course, the Super Bowl aftermath, the country’s political future and the greatness of Tiger Woods. I would be remiss if I wrote that those magnanimous topics have escaped my subconscious, but I have made time to explore another current event – the impending start of the LPGA Tour golf season. The LPGA makes its season debut next week at the SBS Open (Feb. 14-17) at Turtle Bay in Hawaii on Valentine’s Day nonetheless. LPGA veteran, and no doubt object of much Valentine’s day affection, Natalie Gulbis, is spending this week prepping for the upcoming season by attending Fashion Week in New York City. Reportedly she hasn’t done anything but observe but I’m certain designers wouldn’t mind if she hit the runway.
Gulbis will be joined this season on certain LPGA Tour stops by non-exempt rookie and part-time model Anna Rawson, giving the tour a coveted 1-2 punch of sex appeal that could garner quite a bit of attention from the male demographic. Forget Tiger and Rory Sabbatini, that final round pairing would really be a sight to behold. The topic has surfaced before and certainly will resurface every time a fresh, pretty face bursts onto the scene in women’s athletics. And the question raised is simple – Is it better for one’s career to be attractive or accomplished, if you can’t manage to be both.
Gulbis’ commercial success certainly bodes well for the 26-year-old Australian model turned professional golfer.
She represents 24 Hour fitness, Adidas, Anheuser Busch, Canon, MasterCard, Sky Caddie, Taylor Made, The Ritz-Carlton and Winn Grips to name a few. Sorenstam’s list of clients is in no way shabby, but her victories haven’t turned as many heads as Gulbis’ looks. No swimsuit calendars, reality shows or runway-side seats have come her way either. Maybe the biggest difference is Gulbis’ willingness to allow herself to be marketed as a sex symbol and let the golf speak for itself. Last year she took home her first LPGA victory at the Evian Masters and that at least gives her a decided advantage over Anna Kournikova. Kournikova is the former tennis professional who opted to take the beauty queen route while failing to win a single tournament. Gulbis and Sorenstam, who had the worst season of her remarkable career in 2007, will both be at the SBS Open next week. According to Rawson’s public relations representative she won’t debut at the season opener but will compete in a number of LPGA Tour events. When she does finally tee off there will be many stories written depicting a model/golfer instead of well, a model golfer. She already has a running start as far as endorsements go. Rawson just signed with Swedish-based J Lindeberg to represent their women’s golf apparel line and serve as the assistant design consultant for the JL ladies golf line. My advice to Rawson – go with it. While you’re working on being LPGA good, allow yourself to be promoted as a really attractive female athlete. By the way it appears that is exactly what her representation is planning on doing. Her web site, www.annarawson.com, looks more suited to promote Gisele Bundchen than Mia Hamm. Players like Gulbis and Rawson may draw the ire of some fans who believe these young women are simply being celebrated for their image rather than for substance. While this may be true, attracting attention to their respective sports should be top priority and this achieves that goal. Take it from someone who spent considerable time watching the outstanding University of North Carolina women’s soccer program compete; the skill displayed on the field by top female athletes is compelling enough and will eventually get noticed ,but not without putting people in the seats first. There is plenty of time to be both a runway model and a role model and it will only help women’s sports reach new heights in this country.
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