Courtesy: Bret Douglas/LPGA

Many years ago, I was a member at a club north of Toronto. One day, on the eve of the Canadian Open which was still being held each year at Glen Abbey, a bunch of us were talking about going to see the opening round and watch the PGA pros up close.

One of the members threw down a gauntlet. "I wouldn't go and see the men play", he said to an astonished group waiting to hit on the first tee, "but I would go and see an LPGA tournament any day of the week!"

"Why would you want to do that?" someone had the wherewithal to ask.

"Because", he said, "the women pros play a game that's a lot closer to us amateurs than the men play".

There were mutterings of "sissy" and "wuss" heard from a few in the group and his remark was dismissed out of hand. Watch the women? Gimme a break.

Off I went to the Canadian Open at Glen Abbey and was mesmerized to see Greg Norman drive the ball off the tee. It was truly an incredible sight. Like a Shuttle launch.

But nothing I could relate to at all.

I was recalling the incident the other day and fired off an email to Sandra Post, former LPGA star and now teaching pro, to get her thoughts.

"I often hear the remark from men that they would rather watch the LPGA tour than the PGA tour." Why? "They can relate their own games more to the women players where distance is concerned."

She cited a very good example. "Lorena Ochoa, who was LPGA player of the year in '06 is 115 pounds and drives it consistently 280". Well, I sure can't drive it 280 yards, even with a following hurricane. And I weight about 170.

Ah, but there is a very good reason the women are as long as they are, something Anne Chouinard from the Canadian Golf Academy alluded to in a previous post here.

Sandra's words: "The women players swing the club with a smooth tempo somewhere between 95-115 MPH and always finish in balance. By just watching the LPGA players you actually can improve the rhythm of your own swing".

Now that's something I can use! It's that old instruction fundamental: tempo, tempo, tempo. It works. Ochoa is living, winning proof!

We can learn from their short games, too, says Sandra Post. "Those shots around the green - where the PGA players take out the 60 degree wedge and make those huge swings - look easy but for the recreational player it can be disastrous. The women will use pitch and runs, the wedge, sand and the 60 degree clubs but vary the shots."

Sandra strongly recommends taking in an LPGA event just to watch the women swing and realize how much you can improve your own game. And, she says, you can get a lot closer to the women players, too. All of which has to be worth the price of admission!

So, what do you think? Do you share Sandra's views? Post a comment here and share your thoughts!