Today's athlete is a media monster. http://buzzmanager.wordpress.com/2008/12/04/are-athletes-using-social-media-to-its-full-potential/ Whether they like it or not, big salaries in the entertainment business mean big time fame. That fame comes along with a lot of judgment also. We hold our athlete's in this country to the highest of standards. They're Gods as long as they win games and live the way we think they're supposed to live. As soon as they have a loss or don't live the life we as spectators expect, WATCH OUT! We'll turn on you in a heartbeat! This being known, athletes try to live up to our expectations and this takes marketing. They marry celebrities, land endorsements, do cameos, start apparel companies, have reality shows... anything to stay in the public eye. Sports managers are smart enough to know that the more famous the athletes, the better to negotiate a salary. Tiger Woods is an amazing athlete and more importantly a smart business man. Tiger understands golf in the public eye. He knows that in order to make big money in the sport he has to act accordingly. Golf is known as an older white conservative sport. Tiger is very good at working this angle considering. I believe he wasn't ready to do the family thing yet but may have made a business decision. Being the whole package would impress endorsement opportunities like Accenture and TAG. It made him the "All American Boy". But all good things must hiccup. He cheated.....a lot. This lost him a lot of endorsements and he'll have to boost his reputation to get them back. This is where a good publicist can make or break you. Athletes are no longer people, they are products as well and must take close care not to harm their image.

Lamar Odom is another fine example of the "New Athlete". He wasn't even a starter for the Lakers until Anthony Bynum had that hip thing. But after meeting Khloe Kardashian he popped the question quickly. Was it love? Could be. He did however pop that same question to Taraji P. Hensen less than a year before following a short relationship. http://www.brandfreak.com/2010/03/lamar-odom-keeping-up-with-the-bryants-thanks-to-famous-wife.html I personally think that Lamar understands the endorsement money that comes with "fame by association". I don't knock folks for doing what they do. I'm simply stating that it's a harsh world out there for the new athlete and people do what they've gotta do.