Michelle Wie, At Long Last A Major Champion, Should See Greater Endorsements

Unmistakeable symmetry, but diametrically opposite results for two American parties competing in two different continents on Sunday afternoon.

At the 2014 FIFA World Cup in the humid city of Manaus in the Brazilian amazon, an American squad poised to make history with both a stunning comeback versus world number four Portugal and advancement to the knockout stages through just two games in the Group of Death had victory snatched from their boots with 30 ticks to play as world footballer of the year, Cristiano Ronaldo, showed his class with an exquisite cross that found the head of teammate Varela in the 95th and final minute of a 2-2 draw.

And though the ratings for that match will likely set marks as the most watched U.S. soccer match in history, the history-making achievement of the day belonged to once-child-prodigy now 24-year old Michelle Wie, who on Sunday won her first major championship by taking the U.S. Women's Open at Pinehurst #2 in North Carolina.

As dejected as I am that the men's soccer team couldn't hang on for a few extra seconds to earn a birth into the next round of the tournament, I was overjoyed for Ms. Wie.

Her agent should be overjoyed as well, given the added interest her victory should attract for corporate ties to the Wie brand.  Not to mention that this U.S. Open actually featured some young American talent for a change that might better resonate with future ratings and corporate interests in the LPGA Tour.

Like the soccer match, there was late drama as Wie, who stood on the 16th tee with a three-shot lead, saw that lead dwindle to one stroke after taking an unplayable lie after her second shot became lodged in the green-side junk.  But like her soccer countrymen, she showed resolve and promptly birdied the 17th to take a comfortable two-shot cushion to the last hole.

With endorsement deals with Nike, McDonalds, Kia Motors, and Sony in her bag, her endorsement earnings are already somewhere in the $20-25 million range.  A lot of money for someone with few prior accomplishments, but in this sense she parallels auto racer Danica Patrick in that they both were novelties, attractive, showed promise, and spiked ratings in their respective sports initially.

But with the U.S. Open trophy now in hand, expect bonuses from existing sponsors to kick in for the brand visibility spikes afforded, expect new interest from new sponsors, and expect Wie's confidence to grow from this conquest.

U.S. men's soccer team must keep their heads held high, for they still earned a favorable result which furthers their quest for tournament advancement.

But Michelle Wie just advanced the status of her game and bank account with her first major championship victory.