Peter Dawson, the chief executive of the Royal & Ancient, has insisted the governing body will not "bully" clubs such as Muirfield into altering their male-only membership policy.
Augusta National's admission of its first female members, Condoleezza Rice and Darla Moore, allied to the return of the Open Championship to Muirfield in July, have placed claims of gender discrimination by the R&A back on the agenda. Muirfield is one of three homes to the Open – Royal St George's and Royal Troon are the others – which controversially have no women as part of their membership.
"To think that the R&A might say to a club like Muirfield: 'You are not going to have the Open any more unless you change your policy', is frankly a bullying position that we would never take," Dawson said. "Muirfield has a huge history of the Open Championship, this will be the 16th time it has been played there, and who are we to say what they should do because they are behaving perfectly legally.
"We borrow Muirfield's golf course for two or three weeks every 10 years. They allow us to stage the Open Championship at their golf course. Personally, I think this idea that it sends out a dreadful message to the world is considerably overblown, but that is my own opinion. We don't see it as our role to attack golf clubs which are behaving perfectly legally."
Dawson, moreover, pointed to examples of female-only golf clubs, both in St Andrews and Troon. "There is no pressure for a mixed-gender club in St Andrews," he said. "People are very happy to be able to join the clubs as they are and we intermingle, there are social events between the clubs all the time."
While that may be a valid point to debate, the establishment of such places happened back in a time when golf and society were far more male-dominated environments than today. Elsewhere, life has moved on. Moreover, pointing to something being within the law is one thing; the morality of taking the biggest golf event in Britain to a club with Muirfield's history is quite another.
"I don't actually believe that the Open being played at Royal St George's or Muirfield or Troon does have the negative impact suggested," Dawson said. "I don't see evidence of it.
"I understand that people might want to be against single-sex clubs but I don't believe that a few single-sex clubs, even if the Open is held at one of them, materially affects participation in the game of golf.
"My personal position is that I totally believe in equality but I do also believe that there are times when men need to socialise with men and women need to socialise with women.
"I think that reflects majority opinion and I don't think there's much wrong with that as long as nobody is disadvantaged by it. From the R&A's perspective, if I thought it was materially affecting participation I think we'd have a very different view because ultimately we are here to do what's good for golf, not just what's good for the R&A.
"Our primary duty as far as the Open is concerned is to do what's good for the Championship – and to kick venues like Royal St George's, Muirfield and Troon into touch would not be good for The Open. We wouldn't think of doing it."
It must be remembered, though, that the Open's championship committee – which runs the event – is comprised entirely of R&A members. The R&A itself is male only. Before the likes of Muirfield could be pressed further on its policy in an Open context, that would have to change.
When linked to the positive coverage Augusta received for the admission of female members, Dawson was asked if the same would apply to the R&A, should it follow suit. "That's a logical extension of it," he replied. "But I will caveat it by saying that admitting a small number of women members, while it would send out a potentially positive message, I don't actually think it would change very much in British golf.
"Because one club does one thing at a certain time, it doesn't lead logically to the fact that a club somewhere else has to do the same thing at the same time. But I do not deny that step Augusta made was a very positive one."
Just don't expect those in Scotland to follow suit. Anytime soon, at least.
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