Monumental Sports & Entertainment Vice Chair SHEILA JOHNSON is starting her second year as the first black woman on the USGA Exec Committee, and part of her mission is "to shake up the blue-blooded USGA, and to make golf more welcoming to all," according to John Paul Newport of the WALL STREET JOURNAL. Johnson said of her interview with the USGA, "I told them I could be their eyes and ears out there in a different world than theirs." Johnson "characterized her first year on the committee as baptism by fire." Johnson said, "I had to learn how the USGA worked, when to wear the blue jacket, when not to wear the blue jacket, the rhythm of how they think." The job has been "far more time-consuming than Johnson expected." She now is "focused on her main task, leading a new USGA task force on accessibility for minorities, women, kids and the disabled." Her approach is "distinctly top down, reflecting what she believes she can bring to the party." Johnson: "One of the first baby steps I'm taking, for this summer's U.S. Open at Pinehurst, is to invite 10 or so very well-known African-Americans ... who are also big golfers. They have never really been invited .... I want to start introducing them to different members of the USGA, who maybe aren't used to seeing people a little bit different from them." Johnson also is "chairing the USGA's committee on corporate sponsorships." Another priority for Johnson is "helping the USGA clarify its message of inclusiveness" before its 12-year contract with Fox starts next year (WALL STREET JOURNAL, 3/15).
