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It’s tough for a swing coach to become a household name but no one has come closer to achieving that status than Hank Haney, the man responsible for helping shape Tiger Woods’ game and doing everything in his power to fix Charles Barkley’s golf swing.
Last week, Haney’s name popped up in the news after he caught a fair amount of heat for an answer he gave when he was asked to predict the winner of this year’s US Women’s Open, saying:
“I’m gonna predict a Korean. That’s gonna be my prediction. I couldn’t name you, like, six players on the LPGA Tour. Well, I’d go with Lee. If I didn’t have to name a first name, I’d get a bunch of them right.”
Oof.
Michelle Wie made her displeasure very apparent after his comments came to light, but over the weekend, Haney’s ill-informed prophecy actually came true after Korean golfer Jeougean Lee6 took home the trophy at Charleston.
Haney could have simply rested on his laurels knowing his “prediction” came true, but after the tournament came to a close, he decided to gloat a bit on Twitter while doubling down on his non-expert analysis.
Congratulations to Jeongeun Lee6 on your great win at the US Women’s Open. I knew you’d win. Who’s The Great Predictor now Steve Johnson @steveyrayj
— Hank Haney (@HankHaney) June 3, 2019
My prediction that a Korean woman would be atop the leaderboard at the Women’s US Open was based on statistics and facts. Korean women are absolutely dominating the LPGA Tour. If you asked me again my answer would be the same but worded more carefully.
— Hank Haney (@HankHaney) June 2, 2019
Look, say what you will about Haney’s original comments—I personally thought the reactions were fairly warranted—but I think we have to take a moment to appreciate the fact that there are indeed so many Lees on the women’s tour that Jeougean threw a “6” at the end of her name to differentiate herself (she even prefers to go by “Six” instead of “Lee”).
Poorly phrased? Sure. Racist? Maybe a little bit. But credit where credit is due for being technically right, which—as we all know—is the best kind of right.