Veteran golf coach Hank Haney, suspended from his SiriusXM PGA Tour Radio show for remarks about the US Women’s Open field, said Lee6 Jeong-eun’s victory Sunday in fact backed him up.
Haney, best known for his stint at Tiger Woods’ swing coach, was branded “racist and sexist” by golf star Michelle Wie, just one of the big names of the women’s game to take him to task.
Haney apologized, but as Lee powered to victory in the second women’s major of the season at the Country Club of Charleston on Sunday, he took to Twitter again.
“My prediction that a Korean woman would be atop the leaderboard at the Women’s US Open was based on statistics and facts,” Haney tweeted. “Korean women are absolutely dominating the LPGA Tour.
“If you asked me again my answer would be the same but worded more carefully,” Haney said.
Haney, 63, was asked by radio show co-host Steve Johnson who might win the US Women’s Open and responded: “I’m gonna predict a Korean.
“I couldn’t name you like six players on the LPGA tour,” he added. “Nah, maybe I could — well, I’d go with Lee. If I didn’t have to name a first name, I’d get a bunch of them right.”
After Haney was suspended from the SiriusXM PGA Tour Radio Channel — “at the PGA Tour’s instruction” according to a joint statement from the tour and SiriusXM — Woods said Haney “got what he deserved”.
“Just can’t look at life like that,” Woods said.
Haney, previous apologies aside, appeared to think Lee’s victory vindicated his comments.
“Congratulations to Jeongeun Lee6 on your great win at the US Women’s Open,” he tweeted — taking a couple of tries at the post to get the spelling of her name right. “Who’s the Great Predictor now Steve Johnson.”
