favourite golf courses and I love that tournament

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Jun 6 '16 | By miao1234 | 101

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Any NFL team that drafts Michael Sam will be taking on much more than a rookie pass-rusher. Nike Huarache New Zealand . But experts say the smart approach for a team that signs the leagues first openly gay athlete -- from a marketing and public relations standpoint -- is to simply let Sams on-field play speak for him and his team. "While this is a significant announcement given the sport, the general hope is that hes just accepted as one of the other men on the roster, and therefore his marketability is still simply tied to his ability to play well on the field and ultimately make the team," said Paul Swangard, managing director of the Warsaw Sports Marketing Center at the University of Oregon. Sam declared Sunday that he is gay in interviews with ESPN, The New York Times and Outsports. The Missouri All-American had already come out last August to his coaches and teammates, who respected his privacy. Now Sam is entering uncharted territory as he prepares for the NFL draft. The SECs co-defensive player of the year was projected to be a mid-round selection. At 6-foot-2, 255 pounds, Sam will likely have to transition to outside linebacker, which could impact where hes drafted. But announcing hes gay could also have an impact on his draft status. "Im not naive to think there arent potentially some owners or executives out there who will say, Eh, Im not so sure now." said Golden State Warriors President and Chief of Operations Rick Welts, who came out publicly in 2011. "But also, I hope, there are a lot who would say, Theres an opportunity to do something that I think our fans would actually embrace. And if were supposed to win football games, if this guy helps us win football games, thats somebody we should have on our roster." Sam, 24, joins a growing list of active athletes to publicly come out, including Robbie Rogers, a winger for Major League Soccers Los Angeles Galaxy, and Brittney Griner, who plays for the WNBAs Phoenix Mercury. Conner Mertens, a kicker for Division III Willamette University, came out as bisexual late last month, and is believed to have been the first active college football player to publicly announce his sexuality. Griner, as one of the WNBAs brightest stars, was the centerpiece of the Mercurys marketing campaign. She also made a point of supporting causes that are important to her. "There was nothing about her that was difficult in marketing. We supported what she wanted to do with bullying and the LGBT community. We made those connecting points," said Amber Cox, president of the Mercury before leaving to go to the Big East last fall. Nike has also thrown support to LGBT athletes, signing both Griner and Jason Collins, a former NBA player who came out last year, to sponsorship deals, and launching its "Be True" campaign. Profits from the .BeTrue collection are being donated to the LGBT Sports Coalition to support the goal of ending discrimination in sport. Mark Elderkin of the Gay Ad Network, an online media platform for national advertisers, said NFL teams need only look at Sams track record. "Theyre going to make their choices based on who the best college athletes are. And theyre going to choose Michael if they deem him the best pick. So, I think they need to focus on the facts, and his performance over the years, his All-America status and everything hes done for Missouri," Elderkin said. "Also his relationships with the fans, and with the positive energy he has around his teammates and their full support, shows that hes not going to be disruptive to the team in any way, but is going to add value." But its still a reality that gay athletes face a backlash. Derogatory comments were easily found among the positive posts on social media and other online commentary following Sams announcement. A Pew Research survey last year of lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender adults in the U.S. found that just 4 per cent saw pro sports leagues as friendly toward LGBT people, while 59 per cent saw the leagues as unfriendly and 36 per cent saw them as neutral. Still, even over the past year there have been significant overall victories in gay and lesbian rights, most notably two U.S. Supreme Court decisions in June. One ruling cleared the way for ending a ban on same-sex marriages in California; the other struck down a 1996 law passed by Congress that banned federal recognition of same-sex marriages. It remains to be seen how growing tolerance extends to the NFL playing field. "I think the point thats being made in a lot of the discussion is, Lets just move on," Swangard said. "If the guy makes a team, then he makes the team. His sexual orientation shouldnt be the story." Adidas Superstar Nz . - The CJ2K era is over in Tennessee, just the latest step by the Titans in their franchise makeover. Nike Force Ones For Sale . "Im pushing our guys," Casey said after practice Friday, making the case for his backcourt duo, Kyle Lowry and DeMar DeRozan, to get voted in as first-time All-Stars.Graham DeLaet was out on the practice range working on his game on Monday morning, preparing for his first U.S. Open. Its almost hard to believe that the player ranked 32nd in the world, who has earned more than $2 million this year, dazzled at last years Presidents Cup and has 16 top-10 finishes in the last three years, is just now completing the career slam - in terms of playing them, that is. Sometimes we forget that as good as he is, hes still relatively young in terms of being at the elite level. His talent exceeds his experience at this point of his career, which isnt necessarily a bad thing. Still, he does know a good course when he sees one. Having toured around the back nine at the famed No. 2 course here at Pinehurst, DeLaet quickly pronounced it to be a favourite. "It automatically went into my top 10 of all time," said the lone Canadian entrant in the American championship this year. "Its a great test, its an awesome old-style golf course and its going to be a lot of fun." Fun? The U.S. Open? Yep, this is definitely his maiden voyage in this tournament. While he hasnt been playing it, DeLaet, of course, has been an avid viewer of the American championship, and he knows that unlike most of the past, oh, 50 or 60, U.S. Opens, this year there is no long, punishing rough lining the fairways. Instead, Pinehurst has been returned to its original design, thanks to Ben Crenshaw and Bill Coore, with scruffy waste areas full of wiregrass bushes on the borders of the short grass. Its something that DeLaet says could prove to be a bit of a lottery for those who stray from the fairway. "This is my first U.S. Open but Ive watched in on TV for years," he said, "and its always been the deep rough and this year there is no rough at all. But the waste area or whatever you call it, sometimes you can get in there and have a pretty clear shot and get a lot of club on it and you can get in there and have a lot of bad breaks as well." DeLaet believes that hitting it into the scruffy section - officially, native areas - will give you about a 50 per cent chance of having a good lie. You might bee able to play the shot like a fairway bunker or you might end up behind a tuft of grass that will mean chipping out sideways. Nike Huarache Triple Black. The frustration levels could rise significantly if a player gets enough of the bad lies. DeLaet knows that too will be a big part of surviving the week, keeping his patience at an even level and trying to survive the mental test that is a big part of this event. Along with the predicted high temperatures, it will be a tough task for any player to keep their minds focused at all times. While DeLaet is working on his mental side, his physical appears to be in order. He was forced to miss the Memorial two weeks ago with a sore leg, something he now feels is on the mend. "I just kind of had a strained tendon on the outside of my right foot," he stated. "It wasnt extremely painful or anything like that but I just knew if I kept playing - and walking on uneven slopes is the worst for it. And Memorial unfortunately is up and down. I mean thats one of my favourite golf courses and I love that tournament and I have good vibes going in there. It killed me to miss that tournament but I knew for the rest of the year I had to be smart and I just didnt make it worse and over the last couple of weeks with some rest, it has gotten a lot better." While this has been a good year for the Saskatchewan native, he has been in search of more consistency on the greens. In the second round of the Players, he switched to a left-hand-low putting grip that he was practicing with on Monday, under the watchful eye of short game coach Gabriel Hjertstedt. Its just one more little thing he hopes will unlock the mystery that is putting. DeLaet is also hoping that he can bring his game around in a big event. While hes posted six top-10s this year, including consecutive runner-up finishes at Torrey Pines and Phoenix, he missed the cut in both the Masters and the Players. Its understandable as he adjusts to tougher set-ups and deeper fields, but this is where he wants to perform, this is where he wants to be contending. Hell get that opportunity starting at 1:36 on Thursday afternoon. Cheap Jerseys Wholesale Jerseys Wholesale Jerseys Cheap Jerseys Cheap NFL Jerseys Cheap Jerseys China Wholesale Jerseys ' ' '

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favourite golf courses and I love that tournament

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