upworthy

mansplaining

Pop Culture

Man tries to correct a female golfer's swing, having no idea she's actually a pro

“My hope is that he comes across this video and it keeps him up at night."

Representative Image from Canva

A man tried to tell a pro golfer she was swing too slow.

We’re all probably familiar with the term “mansplaining,” when a man explains something to a woman in a condescending or patronizing way. Often, this comes in the form of a man explaining a subject to a woman that she already knows on an expert level. The female neuroscientist who was told by a man that she should read a research paper she actually wrote comes to mind.

Recently the next-level mansplaining was caught in the wild. Well, at a golf driving range anyway. Georgia Ball, a professional golfer and coach who’s racked up over 3 million likes on TikTok for all her tips and tricks of the sport, was minding her own business while practicing a swing change.

It takes all of two seconds on Google to see that when it comes to incorporating a swing change, golfers need to swing slower, at 50-75% their normal speed…which is what Ball was doing.

And this is what prompted some man to insert his “advice.”

In the clip, we hear the man say “What you are doing there … you shouldn’t be doing that.”

Exhibiting the patience of a nun, Ball simply tells him that she’s going through a swing change.

But her attempts at reason are unfortunately interrupted, multiple times, when the man repeatedly assures her that since he’s been playing golf for 20 years, he knows what he’s talking about.

He then insists that she’s going too slow on her swing and should be following through.

Cue Ball’s incredulous look to the camera.

@georgiagolfcoach Can you believe he said this? 😳⛳️👀 #golf #golfswing #golflife #golftok #golftiktok #golfer #golfing #golfgirl #golfpro #golftips #golfclub #drivingrange ♬ original sound - Georgia Ball Golf

Hoping to appease him, Ball finally gives a hearty swing, writing “I knew I had to make this a good one” on the onscreen text.

As the ball sails through the air, the man says “see how much better that was?”

Yes. Really. He really said that.

Poor Ball then tries to tell him that even the “best players in the world” slow down their swing when going through a swing change.

“No, I understand what you’re saying, but I’ve been playing golf for 20 years,” the man repeats. At this point Ball is just “trying to keep it together.”

Sure, this guy might have not known who Ball was, but it’s pretty evident that the last thing she needed was this guy’s “advice.” And thus, the “mansplaining” jokes commend in the comments section.

Here’s a small sampling:

“As a guy, this is the first time I’ve ever seen ‘mansplaining’ happen.”

“The way he took credit for your next swing.”

“But did you consider that he’s been playing golf for 20 years?”

“*implement nothing he says* ‘See how much better that was’ HAHAHAHAH.”

“My hope is that he comes across this video and it keeps him up at night."

Others couldn’t help but praise Ball for keeping her cool.

“He doesn’t even give you a chance to explain, just forces his opinion and advice onto you. Goon on you for staying calm and polite,” one person wrote.

Of course, others felt Ball was being “too nice” to the man. One even exclaimed, “there’s no reason to be so polite!”

And perhaps worst of all, this kind of behavior is pretty common, especially for female athletes. A fellow female golfer even commented “So glad you posted this because it is my BIGGEST frustration when I’m at the driving range. Unfortunately, men always feel the need to comment on my swing or want to coach me. Guys take note: Please don’t.”

On the bright side: as annoying as it is that Ball had to endure that (not to mention what it says about the very real b.s. that women in general have to put up with on the regular) she laughed it off and just went on about her life being awesome at what she does. Just like the other smart, capable women of the world.

It’s almost like…maybe women don’t need advice, so much as they need respect? Now there’s a concept.


This article originally appeared last year.

Some people apparently don't understand just how unbelievably good Serena Williams is on the tennis court.

Why they don't understand this is unclear. She holds more open era Grand Slam titles than any other tennis player, male or female. She's set Olympic records, ranking records, age records, prize money earnings records—the woman is a record-breaking machine. (Fun fact: Williams is the highest paid female athlete of all time, having earned $86 million in prize money during her career. The next highest is Maria Sharipova, with $38 million in prize money. If that's not total dominance, I don't know what is.)

Her list of tennis championships is a mile long. You don't even have to follow tennis to know that Serena Williams is a freaking powerhouse of a tennis player, not to mention one of the greatest athletes of all time.

And yet, there are dudes who believe they could take her on.


Man exposes the absurdity of sexist marketing by creating shirts that label men like we do women

Not professional tennis player dudes, but average, sit-around-binge-watching-TV-shows-like-the-rest-of-us dudes. And more than a tiny handful of them, apparently. In a survey of 1,732 British men and women conducted by Yougov.com, a full one in eight men responded they definitely could score a point against Serena Williams if they met her on the tennis court.

That's 12 percent of the male respondents who are out of their everlovin' minds. Another 14 percent indicated they weren't sure if they could score against her or not. (Seriously? Not sure? Remember we're talking about Serena Freaking Williams here?) Thankfully a solid 74 percent understood they are mere mortals while Serena Williams is a tennis goddess. But what's up with the 26 percent who think they might stand a chance?

To the dudes who are convinced they could score against Serena Williams, please watch this video. The first minute is all in good fun, as three guys attempt to return one of Williams' wicked serves. (Spoiler: They can't.) But it's the second half that will shatter any delusions you have that you'd be likely to score against this G.O.A.T. tennis pro.

Megan Rapinoe says the best way to support equal pay is by putting your money where your mouth is

Watch Serena hit a tennis can off of a moving cart and a man's head. Watch Serena smash a not-even-full water balloon hanging from a string. Watch Serena swish a tennis ball through a basketball hoop from halfway up the stadium. This woman's power and precision are scary. She may have an infectious smile and an exuberant laugh, but you should be scared of Serena the Tennis Goddess, dudes.

Seriously. Watch and be humbled:

Serena Williams just being one of the greatest athletes of all time...

From Your Site Articles
Related Articles Around the Web

Tony Robbins is an incredibly powerful man. But a video that went viral over the weekend revealed he has a major weakness when it comes to understanding women.

The 6-foot-7 self-help phenom, whose philosophy is based on strength, empowerment, and straight talk, regularly fills stadiums with devotees. But this time, while speaking to another sold-out room in late March, he went a little too far.

"I'm not knocking it," he said, but "if you use the #MeToo movement to try to get significance and certainty by attacking and destroying someone else, you haven't grown an ounce. All you've done is basically use a drug called significance to make yourself feel good."


Fortunately, one woman was brave enough to stand up to Robbins.

"I think you misunderstand the #MeToo movement," Nanine McCool said into the microphone. "Certainly there are people who are using it for their own personal devices, but there are also a significant number of people who are using it not to relive whatever may have happened to them, but to make it safe for the young women. So that they don't have to feel unsafe."

Robbins advanced on her with a fist out and then questioned whether resisting him is helping. He even suggested that he knew "a dozen men" who'd had to opt to hire men over a "more qualified" but "very attractive" woman "because it's too big of a risk."

"I think you do the whole movement a disservice," McCool replied to a torrent of applause.

Days later, McCool still refuses to back down.

In a conversation with Refinery 29 about the viral video published on April 8, McCool stated that as a survivor, she believes Robbins' assertion that anger was hurting the movement was wrong.

"Being sexually abused, harassed, raped, you're entitled to your rage," she told the outlet. "I just think that the #MeToo movement is a platform, a place for discussion and empathy."

Standing up wasn't easy, she said, but as she watched another powerful man display a startling lack of empathy for those who had been silenced, she felt like she had to do something.

"I don’t remember making that decision to stand up but at some point I was like, 'Oh my god, I'm yelling at Tony Robbins. I need to sit down,' but it was too late," McCool told Refinery29.

McCool says it was a painful experience; she could feel Robbins' anger. But she didn't sit down. Because she wasn't just standing up for herself — something #MeToo founder Tarana Burke, who weighed in on the controversy over the weekend, understands all too well.

"We need a complete cultural transformation if we are to eradicate sexual assault in our lifetimes," Burke explained in a statement on the movement's website. "It means we must build our families differently, engage our communities, and confront some of our long-held assumptions about ourselves."

There's a simple reason why Robbins' take on #MeToo is inherently flawed.

#MeToo isn't about attacking. It isn't about destroying. It's about bringing to light the sexual harassment, misconduct, and assault that's been kept under wraps for so long.

The goal is to provide empathy for those who have been harassed and to hold those who have committed these terrible acts (often powerful men) accountable. While the movement may make some men (including, apparently, Tony Robbins) uncomfortable, it's changing the landscape of how our society views and talks about sexual violence.

McCool's bravery should be a catalyst. And this moment is a reminder of how much the movement has yet to do.

In the days following the video's viral spread, McCool has been celebrated, and Robbins has been both vilified and defended. Soon after the video went viral, Robbins issued an apology, stating that he has much more to learn.

But no apology is as important as a commitment to do better. And watching the video, understanding its dynamics, and then vowing to listen to those who are pushing the movement forward is something that we all need to do.

As she told Refinery29, McCool hopes the video itself will be used to train men "who don't get it." She thinks we can all do better.

Because this isn't about punishment — it's about change. It's about listening to and believing survivors. It's about empathizing with those who are finally brave enough to come forward.

McCool just wants us all to keep the discussion going.

Women are tired of mansplaining bullshit.

Just ask Rabia Chaudry, a critically acclaimed immigration attorney, who was live-tweeting (and fact-checking) President Donald Trump's 2018 State of the Union address on Jan. 30.

During his televised address, Trump announced his plans to protect the American "nuclear family" by clamping down further on immigration. He went on to inaccurately claim that the current immigration system allows a single immigrant to bring in an "unlimited number of distant relatives."


That's simply not true.

Image via Rabia Chaudry.

As Chaudry pointed out, while documented immigrants can sponsor their parents, spouses, and children, "distant relatives" are not eligible for residency sponsorship. (Cousins, grandparents, aunts, and uncles are considered "distant relatives.")

But of course, an anonymous person on the internet had something to say about that.

Twitter user FullMetalBitch3 replied to Chaudry claiming, without evidence, she was wrong since "chain migration has allowed sponsorships of in-laws, cousins, etc."

In response, Chaudry did not mince her words. It only took five words for an epic clapback.

"I'm a fucking immigration lawyer," Chaudry tweeted.

In a matter of minutes, the tweet went viral with hilarious (and very real) responses flooding in her mentions. And though FullMetalBitch3's gender remains unclear, the troll's behavior has reminded many people of their own encounters with "splainers," and in particular, "mansplainers."

In an interview with Upworthy, Chaudry said that she normally avoids engaging with internet trolls on Twitter — but she was on an important mission: to spread the truth.

"In a space like Twitter, we aren't always dealing with real people, we are often battling armies of misinformation bots," Chaudry said. "And while I don't believe in arguing with bots, there are people out there who are watching quietly, not sure about the truth. It's important to keep putting the truth out there for them."

There is undeniably a phenomenon of far-right trolls and some Trump supporters of refusing to accept or consider impenetrable evidence and/or facts debunking some of the misinformation and blatant lies coming from the White House. Chaudry said part of that is the Trump administration spending a "tremendous amount" of effort to undermine all forms of institutions.

"From science to democracy to media to intel, this administration is engaged in an onslaught to confuse people, create a fog of war that destroys the confidence of citizens in anything and everything," she added. "And they have many handmaidens that are instrumental in this goal — Fox, Breitbart, even the silence of the GOP itself."

If, by now, you've realized Chaudry's name sounds familiar — it should.

Through her 14 years of experience practicing immigration law and her commitment to truth, Chaudry has become a central figure to the first season of the "Serial" podcast. Her book, "Adnan's Story: The Search for Truth and Justice After Serial" is listed as a New York Times best-seller, and her podcast "Undisclosed" has more than 200 million downloads.

But her expertise and impact extends far beyond immigration law.

The 43-year-old mother is also a well-respected and prominent voice in the national security field and is the recipient of numerous prestigious awards, such as the Truman National Security Project's 2015 Harry S. Truman Award for Communications and Media Influence. Chaudry is also widely sought after as a public speaker and writer on national security, civil rights, religion, and gender, and she often trains law enforcement officers on understanding the Islamic faith.

Despite her remarkable expertise in the intersection of immigration, law, and national security, Chaudry says she still deals with the occasional moments of splaining.

And she calls the perpetrators out, particularly when they are men.

"I've learned to take up space with my body — I'm short and I wear hijab, which renders me invisible to some — and to be strongly declarative," the lawyer said. "I don't hedge much anymore, and that seems to help shut the mansplainers down."

Chaudry, who also happens to be Muslim, said that her experience is obviously not unique.

"Fake news and bots aside, I think women in general — Muslim or not, accomplished or not, expert or not) consistently are challenged by the 'but actuallys' of confident, but uninformed, men," Chaudry said. "I've learned over the years to change the language, verbal and physical, I use to help convey my expertise. Many women do couch their statements in terms that are less assertive, use body language that is not too confrontational."

But what does Chaudry say that other women and male allies can do to fight against the microaggressions of splaining?

"By doing what they did with that very basic tweet about immigration — share the voices of others," she added. "Just share, amplify, and echo. It validates the voices, opinions, expertise of those who have to fight to prove it otherwise."