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"Normally you might find a post about green blazers over at Slaves to Fashion, but I&amp;#x27;m not talking about a style available to pluck from the racks at J.Crew--I&amp;#x27;m referencing golf&amp;amp;#8217;s Green Jacket.The bright green blazer has been a symbol of prestige and accomplishment for almost eighty years, worn by members of Augusta National Golf Club, and awarded to winners of the legendary Masters Tournament hosted there (this year&amp;#x27;s starts on Thursday, FYI). The private club is famously exclusive and&amp;amp;#8212;perhaps even more famously&amp;amp;#8212;completely, stubbornly male. After a request to broaden membership from the National Council of Women&amp;#x27;s Organizations in 2002, then-chairman Hootie Johnson responded, &amp;amp;#8220;There may well come a day when women will be invited to join our membership, but that timetable will be ours, and not at the point of a bayonet.&amp;amp;#8221; Obviously, this makes complete sense. Wait, what&amp;#x27;s that? It doesn&amp;#x27;t? And we&amp;#x27;re not in the year 1602? Well, that changes things. Virginia Rometty made headlines just about six months ago when she assumed the role of CEO at IBM, becoming the first woman to lead the company in its hundred-year history. (Golf clap, Virginia!) And, along with hosting the Masters Tourney, another of male-only Augusta&amp;#x27;s traditions is extending a membership to the head of IBM, which is also one of three Masters sponsors. (Hat tip to Bloomberg News for pointing out this conundrum.) So, Augusta will have to choose which tradition it values more: its relationship with IBM or its lack thereof with women. Ultimately Augusta is a private club, and its members alone have the right to extend (or withhold) membership to whomever they choose. That said, a deliberate exclusion of Rometty&amp;amp;#8212;a 31-year veteran of IBM who has made Fortune&amp;#x27;s&amp;amp;#8217; &amp;amp;#8220;50 Most Powerful Women in Business&amp;amp;#8221; list seven times and counting&amp;amp;#8212;says far more about the club&amp;amp;#8217;s hang-ups than her own qualifications. She certainly deserves to don the green jacket alongside her predecessors at IBM, as well as members like Warren Buffett and Bill Gates. If Augusta chooses to honor its own tradition of male privilege rather than one of America&amp;amp;#8217;s most valuable businesspeople&amp;amp;#8212;let alone businesswomen&amp;amp;#8212;it&amp;amp;#8217;s to the detriment of that institution and its members. Women are considered an asset in every other community they enrich; what makes Augusta National any different? And, come on, just look how well Ms. Rometty wears a jacket--she&amp;#x27;ll look super-chic in green. What do you think about Augusta National&amp;amp;#8217;s males-only membership? Do you think it warrants a debate, or does it take away from more important issues? Or did I lose you at the word golf? Photo: IBM News Room"^^<http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema#string>
<http://www.glamour.com/inspired/blogs/the-conversation/2012/04/virginia-rometty-made-history>