WHEAT RIDGE, COLORADO: Paige Spiranac is one of the most popular figures in the world of golf. Despite not being a professional, the social media star has a sizable fan base that has given her a powerful voice in the sport.
Spiranac has a lot to say and is quite outspoken when it comes to her ideas. The influencer, who discusses a variety of topics in her videos, spoke out against the exclusion of women from the sports industry. She expressed her desire to bring about change by calling golf a "male-dominated sport" in the past.
‘If I was a guy, I don’t think people would call it a gimmick’
Spiranac hit back at all the criticism she had received and declared her readiness to modify sports to include more women. According to her, people only objected to it because she was a woman. The influencer criticised the cultural context of sports and charged the high brass with being "non progressive."
In an interview with The Guardian, Spiranac said, "When it comes to the golf industry, I know that people see me as a gimmick. I don’t think I am. If I was a guy and I had the same social following, I don’t think people would call it a gimmick. They’d say it was great… People seem to think I got where I am because of the clothes that I wear. That’s unfair to me and unfair to all of my accomplishment. For people to say, ‘You only show some cleavage, that’s why you have what you have,’ is unfair. That’s the injustice that we face every day as women, and I see it a lot in golf.”
'I was harassed, I was receiving death threats'
At numerous gatherings, Spiranac claimed that she had been "harassed" because of her attire. Then 24, she hit back at detractors and said that she was working to improve the situation for both herself and other female golfers. Recalling her experiences, she said, “I was harassed, I was receiving death threats, people were invading my privacy, I was being blackmailed… Because I look different to a golfer, maybe? I dress differently, I don’t conform to what golf is supposed to be. I love golf, I think it is a great game, but I think there are a lot of things that need to change. I think it needs to become more progressive, more inclusive.”
Addressing the topic of progression within the sport, Spiranac added, “I am just trying to get people to feel more comfortable because I know I’m not alone feeling that way. That’s why people are not getting into golf. The people who are saying golf is progressive, if you look at them, they all look the same. They are all middle-aged men. They obviously feel accepted. When you go to a golf course and look around, you see a bunch of guys, everyone looks like you, so you are going to feel great. If you are walking in as a woman, you don’t feel the same. It’s such a male-dominated sport, it has been around for so long and there are traditions.”
