British open Golf 2013: Muirfield sticks stubbornly to men-only policy as row rages

Muirfield, site of the 142nd Open championships ( British open Golf 2013 ), which is under fire for its ban on female members. The winds of change were not exactly whistling through the parched undergrowth at Muirfield when the 142nd edition of the Open championships began.

Indeed, while the country continues to bathe in the glow created by the success of the Lions rugby team, Andy Murray's win at Wimbledon, Chris Froome's pedalling heroics in the Tour de France and the thrilling win by England's cricketers in the first Ashes Test, golf remains obdurately resistant to the radical notion of embracing women as equals.

British open Golf 2013

This is a summer fairly swimming in testosterone, and the comments of John Inverdale on the BBC at Wimbledon – branding the women's champion Marion Bartoli "not a looker" – reverberated again when the corporation declined a request by the culture secretary, Maria Miller, to take further action, declaring "the matter closed". This is, apparently, the new "moving on".

Miller was not among the many thousands turning pink under fierce sun on the west coast of Scotland. She boycotted the event, along with the sports minister Hugh Robertson and other disgruntled opinion-makers, including Scotland's first minister, Alex Salmond, a keen golfer who lives 40 miles away and who played in a pro-am event at Castle Stewart last week with the American Phil Mickelson.

However, a quick peak through the large Victorian windows revealed no red faces in the splendid clubhouse. The sound of a bandwagon heaving under the weight of politicians hundreds of miles away in Westminster was no more than a distant irritation for the game's governing body, the Royal and (exceedingly) Ancient Golf Club of St Andrew's.

Peter Dawson, their affable chief executive, was not reaching for irony when he said: "I think at the R&A we've been through over 250 years of existence without getting into political comment. Obviously the whole issue of gender and single-sex clubs has been pretty much beaten to death recently."

David Cameron was the first to continue the beating on Thursday when he said such policies looked "more to the past than they do to the future".

His deputy, Nick Clegg, harrumphed more vigorously on radio: "I was just dismayed and incredibly surprised to hear this still goes on in this day and age." Harriet Harman, the shadow culture secretary, was even more forthright. "It's time that Muirfield dragged itself into the 21st century and let women in," she said. "It's time to ban men-only sport clubs."

The club, taking on the battered appearance of the Alamo, issued the sort of carefully worded statement normally reserved for politicians caught with their pants down or their expenses up.

"The club welcomes women to play either as visitors or guests year round with full use of the facilities as will be the case throughout the championship," a spokesperson said. "Over the years Muirfield has hosted many women's events including the Curtis Cup. We are disappointed that some individuals feel unable to attend this year's Open. As a club, we conform to the Equality Act 2010 and any change in the membership would be for the members to decide. At this moment there are no plans to change the current membership status."

So a tournament cruelly called the Open remains anything but. There is disabled access through a side door at Muirfield, but none in the wider sense for women. Out on the course, opinions ranged from mildly uninterested to a little bit annoyed. This is, after all, golf.

"I don't see why men – or women, for that matter – can't group together if they want to," said Mike Kitchen from the nearby village of Aberlady. "So it can stay for me. I think it's OK to have men-only clubs – and women-only clubs."

His wife, Janet, chipped in: "Oh, there aren't any women-only clubs in this area, I don't think. There's Loch Ness in this area, as well, and that's a men-only club. So there's two men-only clubs in East Lothian. I'm not a golfer now, so it doesn't worry me, but I think there are a lot of very good women golfers around here, and they might appreciate joint membership."

Sarah Penny from Manchester said: "I'm indifferent really, because we've got women-only clubs as well. You should be able to pay a green fee and play, but I don't think you should have to be a member. Not a burning issue, for me, certainly not."

Karven Wong, originally from Malaysia and living in Birmingham, said: "I think it's quite ridiculous that the policy still stands. Every club should have freedom to do what they want to do but I think it's just a matter of time before it's reversed, within two or three years."

A steward standing nearby offered his view, anonymously: "Women think the bigger issue is the way they are treated in mixed clubs, not as equals.

"Don't forget there are women-only clubs, although the history of those, I think, is because they weren't getting a good deal in other clubs. The other thing I find a bit disappointing here is there are about 700 members and only about a fifth of them use the golf course. It's a very good dining club for some."

With not a slice of humble pie on the menu, it seems. As the army of stewards, with their "Quiet, please" boards held aloft, persuaded the sweating masses to enjoy the golf in silence, and the players' only complaint on a day of varied success was about the placement of the pins on the slippery greens, the Honourable Company of Edinburgh Golfers, the guardians of ancient values at Muirfield, clasped hands to ears, tongues still resolutely tied.

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