Neuigkeiten rund um das Forum » same calls as other superstars.

RIO DE JANEIRO -- Several of the players competing in the womens Olympic golf tournament have been in Brazil for well over a week. They got here early to practice, watch the mens tournament and take in all that comes with the Olympic experience.It helped that the LPGA Tour did not have an event scheduled the week before and the week after the Olympic tournament.Everyone involved in the womens game, from LPGA commissioner Mike Whan down to the players, including the two women in the field from Brazil, understand how big this is to their niche inside a niche sport.Unlike their male counterparts, the women were always all-in on Rio.This is an extremely important week for us, said Stacy Lewis, one of three Americans in the 60-player field that begins play at the Olympic Golf Course on Wednesday. I think Mike Whan did a really good job of moving our schedule around so we dont play any tournaments around the Olympics. I think that leadership from the top shows that this is an important week for us.This is a great stage for us to play golf on, for the world to see us play more than they do. All of the best players in the world are here -- nobody really dropped out. Everyone is here to compete. I think its so cool. I grew up probably watching the Olympics more than I watched golf. To be here and be a part of this is a big deal.Lewis, 31, had been critical of the men for dropping out, 21 in all, and was concerned it might affect golf in the Olympics going forward. A few weeks ago at the Womens British Open, she spoke of how important golf in the Olympics is to the womens game, and that perhaps the money available in mens golf skewed the perspective of male players.Whan purposely left some room on the schedule so the players would not see the Olympics as a burden. And he, too, has seen this as an opportunity.Were going to get a huge dose of awareness and try to bring those viewers back to us next week, he said. Most of these players grew up with big dreams. Theyre standing on the putting green, this is a putt for the U.S. Womens Open, or this is the putt to win the Ricoh Womens British Open, but nobody stood on that putting green and said, this is for the gold medal.So for most of these players, all of a sudden this whole new goal came about where youre not only playing a great golf event, youre playing in the greatest sports arena in the world, and now theres a new dream for a lot of them. And they also realize that if the next ones 2020, especially on the LPGA, where youth just keeps coming, no one is convinced that theyll be at the top of that chart in 2020 -- so they realize that its an opportunity. It might be a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.To that end, American Gerina Piller predicted during a news conference Tuesday that she would have a hard time explaining her thoughts on what success in the Olympics would mean.Just a few words in, Piller became emotional, tears streaming down her face. Unlike Lewis and the other American in the field, Lexi Thompson, Piller has not won on the LPGA Tour. But she had a strong run of success in 2016 and managed to play her way into the top 15 in the world rankings, assuring her a spot in the Games as long as the United States did not have more than four qualifiers.The only reason all the top players in the world are not here is because of the limitation on players from the same country, specifically South Korea, which qualified four women; seven of the top 15 spots are taken by South Koreans. Given that, Inbee Park, who recently qualified for the LPGA Hall of Fame, described it as perhaps the hardest Olympic team to make. We feel pretty lucky that we are here representing South Korea, she said.Much like the mens tournament, the top-ranked players in the world are expected to contend for medals, with the possibility of some surprises. Two women from Brazil (Victoria Lovelady and Miriam Nagl), a country with just 25,000 golfers among 200 million people, made the field. So did three amateurs (Irelands Leona Maguire, Switzerlands Albane Valenzuela and Hong Kongs Tiffany Chan) -- a testament to their ability to earn world ranking points in professional events.The hope, too, is to show off golf in countries where the game is emerging or isnt as popular.In France, we need that because theres not many golf courses, said French golfer Karine Icher. Golf is a small sport in France. And to bring a medal means a lot and can bring so many young girls and young boys to the sport. So thats something we are looking for.The excitement of the mens event, which concluded with Great Britains Justin Rose outdueling Swedens Henrik Stenson for the gold medal, is certainly something for the women to try to attain. They mostly view it as bolstering the sport even more, a welcome outcome given all the negativity that was apparent prior to the first tee shot being struck.I think its going to help womens golf, for sure, Icher said. I read that [Olympic] golf in the U.S. for the men was the highest audience [actually, the second-highest TV rating behind the Masters this year]. Its funny, because when you are thinking the top four or five players in the world were not here, and still, the highest audience.So I hope its going to be the same for the girls. I think so, because people are curious to see the medalists and the whole Olympic champion and the national anthem. People love that. So it can be just positive for womens golf. It can only bring positive things and good spirit for what we are trying to do every day.Lewis believes it is crucial for the game in general and for the LPGA in particular.For our tour and for womens golf, anytime you can get people to experience what we are about and the way we play ... its different than the guys, Lewis said. Our tour is different, the way we play golf is different. Once people experience and they see it, thats when they come back.The more eyeballs we can get on us, the better. Were constantly fighting for network TV, and thats one huge part of this week. Its beyond anything I think we can do just as a tour. We can hopefully grow our tour and grow womens golf. Air Max 720 Scontate Uomo .com) - The Pittsburgh Penguins placed forward James Neal on injured reserve Tuesday. Air Max 720 Outlet Italia . Two pressure cooker bombs exploded near the finish line of the April 15 race in an area packed with fans cheering the passing runners. Three people were killed and more than 260 injured, including at least 16 who lost limbs. http://www.airmax720scontate.it/ . During the athletes parade, the 23-strong Ukrainian team was represented by a lone flagbearer in an apparent protest at the presence of Russian troops in Ukraines Crimean peninsula. Scarpe Air Max 720 Outlet . Woodson said during a radio interview Thursday that the Knicks Carmelo Anthony doesnt get the same calls as other superstars. Air Max 720 Scontate .Y. - Jerome Samson scored once in regulation and again in the shootout as the St. OREM, Utah -- Conner Toolson scored a career-high 29 points and Utah Valley held on to beat Texas-San Antonio 75-71 on Saturday night.Toolson was 12 of 18 from the field and made three 3-pointers. Kenneth Ogbe had 12 points and Hayden Schenck added 10 for Utah Valley (5-2). Brandon Randolph had eight assists and Isaac Neilson grabbed 11 rebounds.Nick Billingsley scored 21 points on 8-of-17 shooting to lead UTSA (2-6). Nick Allen added 17 points.The game waas tied 58-58 with 4:44 to play.dddddddddddd Ogbe made a 3-pointer, sparking an 11-4 spurt to give the Wolverines a 69-62 lead with about two minutes left. Schenck made a layup and a pair of free throws during the stretch.Billingsley made a 3-pointer to pull the Roadrunners to 71-68 with 28 seconds left but they didnt get closer. ' ' '