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Augusta National Golf Club admits first female members
Augusta National Golf Club has admitted its first female members, the private club announced Monday.
The decision to admit former U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice and business executive Darla Moore of Lake City, South Carolina, ends a longstanding policy excluding women as members of the exclusive Georgia club, which hosts the Masters.
Augusta's membership, which includes titans of industry and finance, has been male-only since its opening in 1932. The policy, which had become a lightning rod issue, had been upheld as recent as  April when Billy Payne, chairman of Augusta National Golf Club and the Masters Tournament, said the issue was a private matter.
Monday's announcement comes as a stark about-face in the club's policy.
"This is a joyous occasion as we enthusiastically welcome Secretary Condoleezza Rice and Darla Moore as members of Augusta National Golf Club," Billy Payne, chairman of Augusta National Golf Club and the Masters Tournament, said in a statement. "We are fortunate to consider many qualified candidates for membership at Augusta National. Consideration with regard to any candidate is deliberate, held in strict confidence and always takes place over an extended period of time. The process for Condoleezza and Darla was no different."
Rice served under President George W. Bush as the first female national security adviser and the first African-American woman to hold the post of secretary of state. She also served on President George H.W. Bush's National Security Council staff and was a special assistant to the director of the Joint Chiefs of Staff in 1986.
"I have long admired the important role Augusta National has played in the traditions and history of golf," Rice said in a statement. "I also have an immense respect for the Masters tournament and its commitment to grow the game of golf, particularly with youth, here in the United States and throughout the world."
Moore is the vice president of Rainwater Inc., the investment firm founded by her husband, Richard Rainwater. Fortune magazine once named her among the top 50 women in business, and the University of South Carolina's business school is named in her honor.
"I am honored to have accepted an invitation to join Augusta National Golf Club. Augusta National has always captured my imagination, and is one of the most magically beautiful places anywhere in the world, as everyone gets to see during the Masters each April," Moore said in a statement. "I am fortunate to have many friends who are members at Augusta National, so to be asked to join them as a member represents a very happy and important occasion in my life. Above all, Augusta National and the Masters  Tournament have always stood for excellence, and that is what is so important to me. I am extremely grateful for this privilege."
Payne noted the significance of admitting the first women to the club.
"These accomplished women share our passion for the game of golf and both are well known and respected by our membership. It will be a proud moment when we present Condoleezza and Darla their Green Jackets when the Club opens this fall," he said. "This is a significant and positive time in our Club’s history and, on behalf of our membership, I wanted to take this opportunity to welcome them and all of our new members into the Augusta National family."
Mitt Romney, the presumptive GOP presidential nominee, tweeted his congratulations to Rice.
[tweet https://twitter.com/MittRomney/status/237583724143841280%5D
Reaction from the public has been swift online following the announcement, with some people complimenting the club and others remarking about how long it had taken them to reach this milestone.
[tweet https://twitter.com/sommanita/status/237583980889784320%5D
One person took an irreverent look at the news, comparing it with the Olympics, which saw two women, modestly dressed and veiled, walked proudly alongside the flag of their nation, Saudi Arabia, into London's Olympic stadium at the Games' spectacular opening ceremony.
[tweet https://twitter.com/IbnLarry/status/237574243204870145%5D
The longstanding issue was again in the spotlight this past April because of IBM's sponsorship of the Masters. The tournament guarantees club membership for its officers, but IBM's top executive was a woman. At the time, Payne defended the policy as a private matter.
"Well, as has been the case, whenever that question is asked, all issues of membership are now and have historically been subject to the private deliberation of members," Payne said at the time. "That statement remains accurate; it remains my statement."
Bubba Watson, the 33-year-old southpaw who defeated Louis Oosthuizen to capture the famed green jacket at this year's Masters, teed off on the topic during an interview with Piers Morgan earlier this year.
"This day and age, I think that, I don't see any reason why (admitting women) could hurt," Watson said.
Most Augusta patrons seem untroubled by male-only membership policyÂ
Women's rights activist Martha Burk tried to change the exclusionary policy nine years ago when she showed up at the Augusta entrance to lead a series of protests against men-only membership. Her efforts were in vain.
When Burk tried to change things in 2002, Augusta's then-chairman, Hootie Johnson, resisted, saying that gender integration would not come "at the point of a bayonet."
In 2006, Burk was among a group of Exxon shareholders who accused the company of violating its discrimination policies by supporting the tournament.
The announcement on Monday sent social media into a frenzy, with Augusta National dominating the conversation. Here's a look at some of the reaction:
[tweet https://twitter.com/TheAnnaRawson/status/237591833138577408%5D
[tweet https://twitter.com/JasonSobelGC/status/237569822311981057%5D
[tweet https://twitter.com/JBoltey1/status/237583760286158848%5D
[tweet https://twitter.com/GMillerTSN/status/237580245778194433%5D
[tweet https://twitter.com/ESPNMcGee/status/237587434274189312%5D
[tweet https://twitter.com/LukeChristy/status/237591316882677760%5D
More on Augusta:
Augusta National a powerful holdout among men-only clubsÂ
Golf.com:Â Augusta National needs women for good of the game
Romney: Women should be allowed to join AugustaÂ
White House: Augusta National should admit womenÂ
On Twitter
@cnnbrk on Twitter
I posted earlier & think this is a positive step for the Augusta Golf club! But I also agree w/those who think separate venues for men & women is OK! Even at coed parties, men & women often separate & gather in groups to talk! Women- in the kitchen or bedroom,kids, jobs, personal issues, Men! Men-in the living room , in front of TV or on patio,jobs, sports, special interests, Women! We do this naturally like it's in our genes! That's OK ,too! That's why this doesn't really matter to the Average American Woman! We know sometimes we have to vent to our own gender! It is cool that Condi Rice was accepted as a Woman, not as an African-American! She has broken several barriors in 1 fell swoop! Congrats To Condi! This is from a person w/"severe" apathy for golf! Thanks, have a good wk!
Can't we just leave somethings alone. Men are so outcast in today's world it is all about women. Us whiney get my own way women. Just let men get back to what they are intented to be MEN!!!! Why does everyone have to do everything everyone else does. Women Stop this or you will be changing your own tire and cutting your grass and planting the garden. I like to do all of the above but. and the end of the day. Either pay to have that service done for you or let the men do it. The ones that want to do it let them stop taking everything away from men!!!!!! Or You will all be married to women. And I like women BUT at the end of the day I want my man to rub my back. We don't have to have everything. Stop being a leader someimes and shut up and follow for a few minutes. Believe me you will get so much further in life when you stop taking and start giving back for a few minutes. And I don't car what comments come back you can always repley to me I will be upfront and honest. I am ok with just the way I am. I raise leaders in my family and not followers but my children unerstand give and take in the world. Shame on you for doing this . I say NO WOMEN IN AUGUSTA!!!! Shame on you for not standing your ground.
White men have it so bad.
I just wonder. I make 50K per year and can pay $100 a month. Can I join? I didn't think so. I'm going to cry.
Gee, we are supposed to celebrate because the other half of the human race (those with their reproductive organs on the inside) are now being welcomed – cant imagine wanting to be a part of that company of fools – gee, we are no longer a threat to the males.....