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Agence France-Presse

Cameron Champ considered not playing in Thursday’s opening round of the PGA Tour’s BMW Championship over the police shooting of Jacob Blake, but made his own statement with his shoes.
The 25-year-old biracial American wore one white shoe and one black shoe with messages of support during his seven-over 77 at Olympia Fields, where Tiger Woods and Tony Finau also backed the growing sport boycott movement.
“I definitely thought about it for sure,” Champ said of sitting out. “But obviously I feel like I can do a lot more playing, and again, showing my support and expressing myself.”
The PGA on Thursday backed the game boycotts and sport shutdowns by the NBA, NHL, Major League Baseball, Major League Soccer and Women’s NBA clubs over shooting of Blake in Kenosha, Wisconsin.
Jacob Blake shooting: this time, players decide how long the stoppage lasts as US sports come together to protest police action
“The PGA Tour supports them and any of our own members standing up for issues they believe in,” the tour said in a statement.
Woods, a 15-time major winner and reigning Masters champion, said he did not consider sitting out the round, which would have ended his bid to qualify for next week’s Tour Championship.


“No, I talked to the commissioner and they were on board. Obviously he released his statement, and all the guys were on board,” Woods said.
“There was talk about it because of obviously what happened, but we’re all on board, on the same page.”
I don’t think I would have been surprised if somebody had boycotted the BMW Championship
Tony Finau
Champ had Blake’s name and “Black Lives Matter” among the messages on his shoes, objecting to police brutality and racial injustice.
“I want to show my love and support,” Champ said.
“Black Lives Matter means all lives matter. Yes, all lives matter, but so do black lives. It’s a situation where, again, as a country, as a whole we’ve kind of dug ourselves a hole. Now with media and people videotaping and seeing things, it’s starting to come alive.
“People are starting to talk about it, which is the good thing. Without dialogue, without talking about it, nothing is going to happen. It’s a decent start, but obviously there’s still a lot of stuff going on that quite frankly should not be happening at all.”
Among those, to Champ, is Blake being shot from behind as he tried to enter a car with his three children inside, a video seen around the world.
“For me just to watch that video ... he’s a human being,” Champ said. “It just has to end.
“It’s a good thing we’re all talking about it. it’s what needs to happen for change to happen.”
NBA postpones Wednesday games after Milwaukee Bucks boycott game five
Tony Finau, the PGA’s first player of Tongan and Samoan descent, cited the charity benefits tour events give to host areas as part of the reasons why he played.
“I don’t think I would have been surprised if somebody had boycotted the BMW Championship,” Finau said. “Our tour has taken the position that we’re going to continue to play.
“We’re in full support of what the NBA is doing.”
Finau called for conversations to help solve the tense racial issues that remain unresolved.
“If we can learn from each other, listen to each other, I think it’s a big deal,” Finau said. “If we can continue to have those uncomfortable conversations, we can move forward.”


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PGA Tour

BMW Championship: Tiger Woods, Cameron Champ and Tony Finau support Blake-inspired boycotts

The shoes worn by Cameron Champ of the United States read ‘Black Lives Matter’ during the first round of the BMW Championship. Photo: AFP

Jacob Blake shooting: this time, players decide how long the stoppage lasts as US sports come together to protest police action

A fan sits in the stands under an announcement that the MLS game between Real Salt Lake and Los Angeles FC had been postponed in Sandy, Utah. Photo: AP

Orlando Magic assistant coach Mike Batiste looks on before Game 5 of an NBA basketball first-round playoff series, Wednesday, Aug. 26, 2020, in Lake Buena Vista, Fla. NBA players made their strongest statement yet against racial injustice Wednesday when the Milwaukee Bucks didn’t take the floor for their playoff game against the Orlando Magic. (Kevin C. Cox/Pool Photo via AP)

FILED - 26 June 2018, US, Milwaukee: Construction workers are seen at the Fiserv Forum Arena. The NBA announced it will postpone five games of three different series in response to the Milwaukee Bucks decision to boycott their playoff game following the death of Jacob Blake, an African-American man, by a white police officer the day before. Photo: Erin Hooley/Chicago Tribune via TNS via ZUMA Wire/dpa

Members of the Portland Timbers prepare to depart the stadium where the team had been scheduled to play the San Jose Earthquakes in an MLS soccer match in San Jose, Calif., Wednesday, Aug. 26, 2020. Major League Soccer players boycotted five games Wednesday night in a collective statement against racial injustice. The players' actions came after all three NBA playoff games were called off in a protest over the police shooting of Jacob Blake in Wisconsin on Sunday night.

Jacob Blake shooting: NBA postpones Wednesday games after Milwaukee Bucks boycott game five

NBA players made their strongest statement yet against racial injustice when the Milwaukee Bucks didn’t take the floor for their play-off game against the Orlando Magic. Photo: AP

LAKE BUENA VISTA, FLORIDA - AUGUST 26: in Game Five of the Eastern Conference First Round during the 2020 NBA Playoffs at AdventHealth Arena at ESPN Wide World Of Sports Complex on August 26, 2020 in Lake Buena Vista, Florida. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. Kevin C. Cox/Getty Images/AFP == FOR NEWSPAPERS, INTERNET, TELCOS & TELEVISION USE ONLY ==

Kenosha protests: Trump orders forces to flashpoint Wisconsin city after shooting of Jacob Blake

A flag flies over a building ablaze during protests in Kenosha, Wisconsin. Photo: AP

A protester takes cover during clashes outside the Kenosha County Courthouse late Tuesday, Aug. 25, 2020, in Kenosha, Wis., during a third night of unrest following the shooting of a Black man whose attorney said he was paralyzed after being shot multiple times by police. (AP Photo/David Goldman)

Men carry assault-style rifles before a crowd of several hundred people throw things and harass law enforcement, Tuesday, August 25, 2020 near the Kenosha County Courthouse in Kenosha, Wis. Violent unrest broke out after video of the shooting of Jacob Blake, 29, was widely disseminated on social media Sunday. Blake was shot in the back several times by a Kenosha police officer. (Mark Hoffman/Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel via AP)

Sport

Golf


The shoes worn by Champ read ‘Black Lives Matter’ during the first round of the BMW Championship



The shoes worn by Cameron Champ of the United States read ‘Black Lives Matter’ during the first round of the BMW Championship.


Tiger Woods

Gun violence in the US

BMW Championship: Tiger Woods, Cameron Champ and Tony Finau support Blake-inspired boycotts

.css-1mniedq{color:inherit;font-weight:inherit;font-size:inherit;font-family:inherit;line-height:inherit;} The shoes worn by Champ read ‘Black Lives Matter’ during the first round of the BMW Championship

The shoes worn by Champ read ‘Black Lives Matter’ during the first round of the BMW Championship