HONOLULU, Hawaii - Twenty years ago on Saturday, Arnold Palmer flipped a ceremonial switch to launch a risky venture that cynics saw as an easy punch line. Brian Goodwin Jersey .The Golf Channel?Tennis magazine mocked the idea as 24 hours of chubby guys in bad clothes speaking in jargon that only they understand. Rick Reilly, in his column for Sports Illustrated, suggested programming that included Body by Jack, a workout session with Jack Nicklaus in which he takes you through a 30-minute routine you can do without getting out of the cart.Even the players had their doubts.Im always stunned that theres enough golf stuff for 24 hours a day, Paul Goydos said. I would have thought, Do we really need a Golf Channel? Is there enough viewership? Enough material? I thought it would be a tough row to hoe, in my opinion. Theyve proven me wrong.Players today cant imagine life without Golf Channel.Thats all I watch, Jason Day said. I say I dont watch much golf, but I do. Pretty much every day Im watching Golf Channel.The network was launched on Jan. 17, 1995, and could be seen in about 10,000 homes. It began as a premium fee ($6.95) and changed to part of a basic cable package by the end of the year, helping it to reach 1.4 million homes.Twenty years later, Golf Channel can be seen in roughly 120 million homes in 83 countries and is broadcast in 12 languages around the world. Its offices in Orlando, Florida, have more than quadrupled to 160,000 square feet.And there is no shortage of programming.The first tournament it broadcast was the Dubai Desert Classic, which Fred Couples won in 1995. On its 20-year anniversary, Golf Channel will have four hours of live coverage from Rory McIlroys season debut in Abu Dhabi; seven hours of taped coverage and four hours of live coverage from the Sony Open (including a pre-game show), along with its popular Morning Drive and a news show.Its a big deal, Palmer said Friday morning from his office at Bay Hill. Everybody is excited and happy with the channel and all the stuff going on. Who would ever thought 20 years ago ... all the things that have happened with Golf Channel?Palmer was a co-founder with TV mogul Joe Gibbs, who plans to make an appearance on Golf Channel on Saturday to commemorate the anniversary. Golf Channel began 18 months before Tiger Woods turned pro, so it was blessed with good timing. Comcast eventually bought out the network, and then acquired NBC Universal, which gave Golf Channel even greater resources and branding capabilities.The most significant moment in its 20 years was when the PGA Tour signed it to a 15-year deal in 2006 that gave Golf Channel rights to Thursday and Friday rounds from the PGA Tour, along with full tournament coverage for the opening three events and the tournaments in the fall. Golf Channel previously had the European Tour and other global events, along with the other three U.S. tours (seniors, women and what is now Web.com).But there was another turning point equally important in the infancy of the network, a time when even Palmer had his doubts about the future. The question was whether it was prudent for Palmer and his investors to get out and cut their losses.We were questioning what we were doing and the viability of what was happening, Palmer said. And they said, How do you feel? I said, Let me say this to you: If I didnt try to hit it through the trees a few times, none of us would be here.The quote is now on a wall at Golf Channel headquarters, a daily reminder that when you hitch up your pants and go for broke, the reward can be immense.Even though were now part of a big company, you still want the spirit of how this place was founded to be a living, breathing part of what makes it tick, Golf Channel President Mike McCarley said. That culture and everything Arnold represented, that should be part of it.McCarley said Golf Channel now is the most affluent network of those devoted to a sport, mainly because of the demographic of those watching.Davis Love III smiled at the coincidence that a network co-founded by Palmer would benefit from the arrival of Woods, the two players who in different ways made golf appealing to the masses.Its make a big difference for our sport, Love said.Golf Channel has kept the newspaper clippings from two decades ago that either panned the idea of a golf channel or predicted failure.That was an easy column to write, McCarley said. It was the first of its kind. Now every sport has its own network.Geoff Ogilvy of Australia was among the skeptics. He remembers when he first came over to America to play in events like the Western Amateur and the Porter Cup. Golf Channel was just getting started.Coming from Australia, we had four channels and we didnt have any cable, Ogilvy said. I thought this was cool, but no chance anyone was going to watch. They had all these infomercials, like Orlimar Trimetal. Remember that? So I was like, Whos going to watch this? But in the last 10 years when they got the tour deal, I think it really kicked on. Now its a legitimate channel — really legitimate.ESPN was the same, he said. I remember when they started, they showed Aussie Rules football because it was the only thing they could afford. ESPN only got there when they started showing real sport, and Golf Channel is probably the same. Its a big channel now. Its a big part of our tour.How far has Golf Channel come?There are sheer numbers. Golf Channel had the rights to 23 domestic tournaments when it began (mostly the LPGA and Nike tours) and 41 events from Europe, South Africa and Australia. This year, it will televise 189 events from the major tours around the world. It began with 180 employees and now has nearly 700; McCarley said 13 employees have been there from the start.And there are intangibles. On the day before it celebrated its 20-year anniversary, Palmer watched his grandson, Sam Saunders, compete on the PGA Tour on a network that he helped to start. Max Scherzer Jersey . Reyes, 26, was traded from Atlanta to Toronto in July 2010 and spent the remainder of the season in the minors. He began 2011 in the majors and made 20 starts with the Blue Jays, going 5-8 with a 5.40 earned run average before he was waived on Aug. Wilmer Difo Jersey . Despite 11-1 records, theyre out and Big Ten winner Ohio State is into the national semifinals. http://www.officialnationalsgearshop.com/Nationals-Michael-Taylor-Kids-Jersey/ . "For the past several weeks, Logan has been dealing and playing with an upper body injury," said general manager Doug Wilson in a statement. "Despite his efforts to play through it, the injury has not responded as we had hoped and Logan has made the decision to undergo a surgical procedure to repair the problem.The Toronto Argonauts have plenty riding on Friday nights game with the Hamilton Tiger-Cats.Most importantly, a win keeps Toronto (5-8) in contention to finish first in the East Division and secure home-field advantage for the conference final. Hamilton (6-7) currently sits atop the standings, two points ahead of the Argos and Montreal Alouettes (5-8).Toronto would also even the season series 1-1, making the Oct. 25 contest at Rogers Centre a pivotal one for both as head-to-head record determines the order of finish in the event of a tie.Toronto would not only fall four points behind Hamilton with a loss, but also lose the season series and its control on finishing first in the division. The Argos focus then, realistically, would have to shift to Montreal and winning their two remaining two games versus the Als to secure second and home field for the East semifinal.Fridays contest has meaning for the Ticats but even with a loss theyd maintain a share of first with a game left against Toronto. And with two games remaining against Ottawa and another versus Montreal, Hamilton would still control its ability to finish first.The Ticats will come into Rogers Centre on a nice roll, having won four straight and five-of-six games with quarterback Zach Collaros. He missed five starts with concussion-like symptoms before returning to lead Hamilton past Toronto 13-12 on Sept. 1 in the first-ever game at Tim Hortons Field.Hamilton is 4-0 at the new venue.Collaros was 27-of-38 passing for 317 yards and a touchdown against Toronto. But more importantly, the Ticats offence converted 15-of-29 tries on second down (51.7 per cent).That allowed Hamilton to control the play as they had the ball for a whopping 37 minutes 54 seconds. Toronto made just three-of-18 second-down chances and mustered only 142 net offensive yards as Ricky Ray was 16-of-29 passing for 142 yards with a TD and interception.However, Toronto was minus slotback Chad Owens, who has played just six games due to injuries. Owens leads the CFL in receiving yards (109) and catches (8.7) per game.Toronto has won two straight and over its last three games has averaged 35. Anthony Rendon Jersey. points, 389 net yards, 121 rushing yards and 32:34 in time of possession. However, its defence has allowed 11 TDs and an average of 31.7 points per game over that span.Hamiltons defence has surrendered an average of just 232 net yards over its last six contests.It all points to a close affair with the more desperate team having a slight edge.Pick a€” Toronto.Ottawa Redblacks versus B.C. Lions, 10 p.m. ET on Saturday night.Both teams would rather forget their previous meeting, won 7-5 by B.C. at TD Place on Sept. 5. Travis Lulay made his first start of the season for the Lions but re-injured his right shoulder. The Lions (7-7) have lost three straight and need the victory to at least remain fourth in the West. Ottawa (2-11) comes off an impressive 42-20 home win over Winnipeg but is 0-8 on the road and East squads have traditionally struggled in Vancouver.Pick a€” B.C.Saskatchewan Roughriders versus Montreal Alouettes, 1 p.m. ET on Monday afternoon.Montreal (5-8) should be rested coming off a bye. Time off late in the season is often a good thing but consider the break came after two straight wins and four victories in five games. The onus will be on starter Jonathan Crompton to help the Als recapture that momentum. Saskatchewan (9-5) has lost three-of-four since starter Darian Durant (elbow) was hurt. Tino Sunseri likely starts, but for how long with veteran Kerry Joseph coming out of retirement?Pick a€” Montreal.Winnipeg Blue Bombers versus Edmonton Eskimos, 4:30 p.m. ET on Monday afternoon.Winnipeg (6-8) looked awful in Ottawa last weekend as quarterback Drew Willy was intercepted three times and Redblacks running back Jonathan Williams rushed for 180 yards and two TDs. The Bombers have dropped five straight and six of their last seven but are just two points behind fourth-place B.C. Edmonton (9-5) was flagged for penalties 18 times for 224 yards in last weekends 33-32 road loss to Toronto and head coach Chris Jones will undoubtedly clean that up.Pick a€” Edmonton.Last week a€” 1-3Overall a€” 39-22 China Jerseys Wholesale Cheap Jerseys Store Cheap NFL Hoodies NFL Jerseys Cheap White NFL Jerseys Cheap NFL T-shirts From China Cheap Jerseys Online NFL Jerseys Cheap NFL Jerseys China Cheap Jerseys Throwback Cheap Jerseys Free Shipping NFL Jerseys Wholesale White NFL Jerseys Cheap Wholesale Nike NFL Jerseys Cheap NFL Jerseys Camo Cheap Authentic Jerseys Wholesale Jerseys 2019 Wholesale Nike NFL Jerseys China NFL Gear Cheap Jerseys ' ' '