When I see John Deere commercials, it's usually emphasizing the tradition and quality of their line of yard equipment and tractors.

What does giving Michelle Wie a sponsor's exemption have to do with promoting John Deere tractors? I could see Wie being a fixture at the Volkswagon Invitational or the IPod Open or some other trendy company sponsor, but John Deere? Shouldn't John Deere be giving exemptions to some Iowa-bred farm boys with a decent game instead? Isn't that more their demographic than teenagers from Hawaii?

Maybe giving her this exemption is the closest John Deere can come to using sex appeal as publicity before crossing the line into a Kenny Chesney music video.

I'm not a "tractor guy". Buying any sort of yard equipment is down my list of priorities somewhere between Detroit Lions season tickets and real estate on the moon, so I admit I'm not in their demographic. I just want a consistent marketing campaign is all. If Wie is getting exemptions based on style and not merit, doesn't that mean John Deere tractors look nice and strong but can't trim weeds for nuthin'?

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