By now, you may have heard that, by the end of 2009, the Ladies Professional Golf Association will require all of its players who have been on tour for at least two years to pass an oral English test in order to compete. While I understand the reasoning behind this rule, I think its objective can be accomplished in a less forceful fashion.

When I initially received an e-mail about this yesterday, my jaw hit the floor in amazement, which was probably a similar reaction to many people around the country. But then I began thinking and reading about it, and the argument for it started to make a little more sense. Since the LPGA is made up of a good percentage of foreign-born players, especially from Asian countries, it is necessary to make them marketable in the U.S. And if they don't speak English, the tour's appeal to fans and sponsors is a tougher sell. In other words, from the LPGA's perspective, this is about business. If American fans can't identify with the top players - no matter how good they are - the LPGA's market position is weakened.

That argument makes sense. But here's the problem: Forcing all players to do this is unnecessary and could make the LPGA look xenophobic.

In my judgment, there is a much better solution to this issue. Instead of making it mandatory, strongly encourage English tutoring for these athletes. This alteration could likely would accomplish the same end goal but would avoid the potential pain and public relation problems that this rule might cause.

Top LPGA players are earning a comfortable paycheck (the top 51 golfers from the 2007 season made over $250,000), although there are opportunities for many of these players to bolster these earnings with endorsement deals.

If a foreign-born player doesn't speak English, there are undoubtedly far fewer opportunities for this kind of off-the-course financial success in the U.S., even for a top-tier golfer. Thus, it would make sense for the established foreign-born players to learn English, and in fact, the majority of them would probably voluntarily take on the challenge. Dollar signs are a universal language, and if the opportunity is there to earn extra cash if they can speak English, players will do it.

A perfect example of a foreign-born player learning English and assimilating into the U.S. culture is South Korean Se Ri Pak. She came to the LPGA about 10 years ago without knowing a word of English. During her time here, she has learned the language and has become a household name - not only because of her remarkable golf game but also due to her marketable persona. And I'm sure many world-class players have and would continue to follow in Pak's footsteps, whether or not they are forced to learn English.

Besides the business element, there's a practical side. In today's USA Today, commentator Dottie Pepper reacted to the experience of a Korean player whose inability to read English led to a misunderstanding about the length of a tournament (she thought it was 54 holes and not 72). After discovering the mistake, the player dashed 400 miles back to the tournament, played the last round and collected more than $21,000.

It seems that it's in everybody's best interest for these foreign athletes to learn enough English to get by. But it also seems that incentives that would encourage players to learn English would ultimately accomplish the same goals for the LPGA as the current mandatory rule would.

Did the LPGA hit this question out of bounds? What do you think?