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PGA president sacked for calling Poulter a 'lil girl'

The PGA of America has sacked president Ted Bishop after he attacked golfer Ian Poulter on social media.

Bishop had reacted to Englishman Poulter's criticism of Nick Faldo and Tom Watson in an autobiography.

Addressing Poulter on Thursday, Bishop tweeted: "Faldo’s record stands by itself. Six majors and all-time RC (Ryder Cup) points. Yours or His? Lil Girl."

The American later followed up with a Facebook post that read: "Sounds like a little school girl squealing during recess. C'MON MAN!"

Both posts have since been deleted.

The jibes prompted the board of directors to act swiftly and remove Bishop. A statement said that his "insensitive gender-based statements" were "inconsistent with the policies of the PGA".

Unacceptable

PGA vice-president Derek Sprague will replace Bishop on an interim basis.

He said: "The members and apprentices of the PGA of America must uphold the highest standards and values of the profession, as well as the manner in which we conduct ourselves at all times.

"We apologize to any individual or group that felt diminished, in any way, by this unacceptable incident."

Bishop had just a month left on his two-year presidency before his sacking.

Shocking and disappointing

In his book entitled No Limits, Poulter revealed that Faldo had "lost a lot of respect" from players when he branded Sergio Garcia as useless during the 2008 Ryder Cup.

He also took aim at Watson - whom Bishop appointed as the 2014 US Ryder Cup captain - for his "utterly bizarre" decision-making, which gave Team Europe "a real boost".

Poulter responded to Bishop's comments in a statement issued to the Golf Channel, where he wrote: "Is being called a 'lil girl' meant to be derogatory or a put down?

"That's pretty shocking and disappointing, especially coming from the leader of the PGA of America. No further comment."

Sources: AFP, BBC

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