First woman to qualify for PGA Tour faces tough call

HARTFORD, Conn. -- Suzy Whaley knows what's at stake as she decides whether to break a barrier in the tradition-filled game of golf.

The history. The responsibility. The possible backlash.

The first woman to qualify for a tournament on the all-male PGA Tour isn't so sure she's up to the task.

"Everybody today has said, 'How could you possibly not play? Of course you have to play, from a woman's standpoint,"' Whaley said Wednesday. "If I do play, it's hard to be competitive from 7,000-and-change yards. What would I shoot from there? Would that be OK for women's golf?"

Whaley, a 35-year-old head pro at a Connecticut golf course, earned an exemption to the 2003 Greater Hartford Open with a come-from-behind victory Tuesday in a PGA Section Championship.

Tournament organizers say she's welcome, and tour players said they thought having Whaley compete would be "cool."

An LPGA Tour player in 1990 and 1993, Whaley said she has a lot of thinking to do before making her decision. Dates for the 2003 tournament are not yet set; it is usually played in late June.

Whaley has until a week before the tournament to decide, but she said she wouldn't wait that long so another player would have the chance to take her spot if she doesn't play.

Whaley's husband, Bill, is the general manager at the TPC at River Highlands in Cromwell, where the event is held.