With All Due Respect, Tiger, Federer Is Da Proverbial 'Man' posted by Greg Archuleta
Tiger Woods is the biggest icon in the sports world today.
No athlete has transcended his sport the way the man with the most famous fist pump ever has transcended the game of golf. Countless fans tune in to golf tournaments only to check Tiger's progress. His popularity has made several other golfers rich because of his appeal as a marketing instrument.
Sure, soccer start Cristiano Ronaldo can attract a crowd of 80,000 to Madrid's Santiago Bernabeu for his introduction as a member of Real Madrid, but no casual soccer fans (is there such a thing?) tune in just to watch Ronaldo or any other soccer player.
Kobe Bryant? LeBron James? Though Kobe apparently is doing quite well as Yao Ming's replacement in China, he's about five more consecutive titles away from erasing his tarnished 2004.
The King? Not so regal these days. First, he disses the Orlando Magic after they bounced his Cleveland Cavaliers in the NBA Eastern Conference finals. Then he has a videotape confiscasted of Xavier sophomore Jordan Crawford two-hand dunking on The Posterized One during a pickup basketball game earlier this week.
Manny Ramirez? Maybe for the first five innings, but ... no. Tom Brady? Not even with his super-model love life.
Only Jack Nicklaus' 18 Grand Slam titles is, for now, preventing Tiger from dominating the conversation as the all-time greatest golfer. Yet, for all Tiger's accomplishments, 68 titles, 14 majors at age 33, he's simply not the greatest athlete of his generation.
That honor belongs to Roger Federer.
American tennis fans, (all six of us) probably are asking, "Who?"
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