Former LPGA golfer Kris Tschetter in a special to the WASHINGTON POST writes she is "unaware of any groundswell demanding a dress code" in wake of the LPGA's recent directive to players. If the LPGA is getting a "negative reaction to the golf fashions of today, then the way to handle it is to make sure the players ... know how they are being perceived by the fans." Not "dictating, top-down, how they should dress." Individuality -- "showcasing different players and their unique styles is one of the things that sets golf apart." Tschetter: "I'd hate to see that change" (WASHINGTON POST, 8/10).
CALIFORNIA DREAMING: THE ATHLETIC's Michelle Smith wrote S.F. is a "prime target for either WNBA expansion or relocation." The fifth-largest media market in the country is "tailor-made for professional women's basketball with its progressive fan base, a long history of great female athletes, and its proximity to forward-thinking technology companies who can give the league more opportunities to expand their marketing and sponsorship horizons." Sacramento was the "home of one of the league's inaugural franchises," the Sacramento Monarchs, from '97-'09. Sacramento fans have been "asking for another chance at a WNBA franchise ever since, but the Bay Area is simply the better bet -- and the superior option -- at this point" (THEATHLETIC.com, 8/9).
SHOWING COMMITMENT: MLB.com's Mark Sheldon noted Commissioner Rob Manfred yesterday "visited the RBI World Series on a day when girls softball participants were playing their semifinal games." Manfred came to Cincinnati "specifically to talk softball and to engage with young women who play." Manfred said, "It gave me an opportunity to put a special focus on softball. ... Historically we have given inadequate focus to softball in addition to baseball. We want to make sure that our efforts capture the entire population, male and female. We love the idea of making our softball programs every bit as high profile as our baseball programs" (MLB.com, 8/9).
