Pirate Galaxy » t, but it had a beautiful ring in Mala

Several of the top male golfers -- Jason Day and Rory McIlroy among them -- have declared they will not compete in the Olympics due to concern about the Zika virus. But if golf legend Annika Sorenstam still was on the LPGA Tour, she would definitely play in Rio. Both to be an Olympian and to benefit the sport.Its sad because I was in the presentation to the IOC to get golf in the Olympics, said Sorenstam, a 10-time major champion. For them, it was, OK, we need to get the best players to play, and this was the first time in several years that all the organizations had lined up and were ready to commit ... So now when you see the players not competing, its certainly disappointing for whatever reason.Concerns over Zika might be overblown. Epidemiologist Mikkel Quam recently estimated that just one in 31,000 people might get the virus during the Olympics. Your chances of being killed in a car accident in the United States this year are substantially higher. Yet we still rent cars and drive around, Sorenstam said.Thus, Sorenstam isnt worried about going to Brazil as an analyst for NBC.As far as I understand, this is a good time of the year to go there, its more dormant, she said. Im going. Im not concerned about that. I may cover myself a little more with mosquito repellent and long sleeves maybe, but other than that, the Olympics is a one-time opportunity.Zika worries are not the only reason for withdrawals, what with the always-demanding professional tour schedules.Some players feel like theyre exhausted, Sorenstam said. They dont see the Olympics as that big of a deal in golf. But when you go to other countries, like Korea and China, thats all they live for. So its cultural.If Sorenstam was playing in Rio rather than broadcasting, just how competitive would she be at age 45 when the average age of players regularly winning LPGA tournaments is around 21 these days?The game is changing, she said. I think a lot of players are better at younger ages. A lot of them dont go to college anymore. Its become very global, so you have players from other parts of the world coming in early. We always talk about experience and how important that is, but we havent seen ... that this year, with people with lots of years of experience behind them.More opportunities for junior golfers is one factor. Sorenstam says her foundation, for instance, holds six junior tournaments around the world annually.We have kids who are 12 or 13 years old or 14 and you watch them and say, they play like they might be 19-year-olds, she said. There are different opportunities that they have early on that are preparing them for pro golf sooner than it used to.It will be interesting to see how long their careers span. Theyre 20; will they be done before theyre 30? Or will their careers be longer? I have a feeling their careers will be shorter if they start sooner. But right now were just starting this phenomenon, so well have to see how many of the 30-year-olds will continue.It will also be interesting to see how the growth of Asian golfers and champions continues.We havent seen the China invasion yet. We have had a few good players, but theyre coming and I think the Olympics will escalate that, said Sorenstam, who retired eight years ago. Were at the beginning of that, but I think other countries will connect and follow and try. There might be another resurgence of U.S. players, there might be a resurgence of European players.While several top male golfers are dropping out, only one woman has withdrawn.I would want to represent my country in the Olympics to be all around these other athletes and be among the elite few that get to do it, Sorenstam said. That is the premier [event] of sports. I know we have majors and our history, but the Olympics have a lot of history. That would be a privilege. An honor.Hunter Renfrow Raiders Jersey . Datsyuk will miss Tuesdays game against New Jersey and could be sidelined longer, while Cleary will likely miss at least the next three games. Its been an injury-plagued season for Datsyuk, who has suited up for just 39 games. Charles Woodson Youth Jersey . Ouellette, from Montreal, already has three Olympic gold medals since joining the team in 1999. http://www.shoptheraidersonline.com/Elite-Jerry-Rice-Raiders-Jersey/ . After Gasquet beat fifth-seeded Ivan Dodig of Croatia 7-5, 6-3, Tsonga followed up with a 6-7 (3), 6-2, 6-2 win against sixth-seeded Edouard Roger-Vasselin in an all-French match. Clelin Ferrell Youth Jersey . Following a lopsided 5-2 loss against the New Jersey Devils on Wednesday night, Paul MacLean told reporters that "theres a lack of focus, theres a lack of leadership and theres a lack of preparation" with his struggling team. That came on the heels of Bryan Murray taking the unusual step of going into the locker room at the Prudential Center and addressing the players himself. Clelin Ferrell Womens Jersey . Team physician Dr. Steve Traina performed the surgery Friday. Robinson was injured in a spill underneath the Nuggets basket during the first quarter of Wednesday nights loss to the Charlotte Bobcats.AUSTIN, Texas -- Toto Wolff says Mercedes faces a very stressful final three races of the season as it attempts to ensure 100 percent reliability for both its drivers.Nico Rosberg leads teammate Lewis Hamilton by 26 points, with 75 left to play for over the remaining three rounds. Hamiltons campaign has been plagued by reliability issues, including an engine failure while leading the Malaysian Grand Prix last month, but he took his first victory since July at the weekends U.S. Grand Prix.It is very stressful for the guys in the garage because there is a lot of responsibility and pressure on them, and everything that is being said, consciously or unconsciously, puts even more pressure, Wolff said. Thats not the right thing to do. Our job needs to be to take pressure away because responsibility and accountability stays there anyway. This is how these guys work.Hamilton admits he has been haunted by the failure in Malaysia and spent much of Sundays U.S. Grand Prix in fear of a repeat.Every single lap I was thinking something might happen, Hamilton said. When I get on that back straight I was petrified. It [the engine] has a beautiful ring to it, but it had a beautiful ring in Malaysia.ddddddddddddI was haunted by that, dreading that would happen so I am so grateful that it didnt. It wasnt until I got over the line that I was like thank you, I am so happy, rubbing the cockpit - thank you for getting me there.Wolff confirmed Mercedes had opted not to pursue an additional upgrade to its engine, meaning Hamilton and Rosberg both have the same spec engine for the rest of the season after the German took a new unit this weekend.We have decided not to bring the latest spec engine and upgrades to every single Mercedes customer, not just us. We are running that specification to what it can run, so that hasnt changed.Asked if there had been any engine worries in Austin, Wolff added: It is never plain sailing. It was as good as it can be with the engine. I understand that Malaysia came out of nowhere and Malaysia swings with all of us. That little trauma is going to remain for a while. ' ' '