According to Sports Illustrated, Tiger Woods made approximately $127 million last year. LeBron James pulled in a little more than $40 million. Alex Rodriguez took home $35 million, and Peyton Manning made $30 million. It seems like professional athletes make big bucks to play games and work out all day. They get paid to drink Gatorade or to only wear Nike and are flown around the world in private jets. Their lavish lifestyles and fun jobs are attractive and are the dreams of many young athletes, but what are your chances of actually making it to the big leagues?

When it comes to so many young adults’ dreams of becoming professional athletes, who really has a shot?

According to a few recent studies, most high school student- athletes have a better chance of winning the lottery than making it to the pros. Here’s a stat that left me scratching my head: The percentage of male high school senior student-athletes who will go on to play NCAA men’s basketball is approximately 2.9 percent. Of those young men that make it through college in NCAA programs, only 1.3 percent will be drafted to the National Basketball Association (NBA). And just what are the odds of a male high school basketball player making it to the pros? About three in 10,000 or 0.03 percent. For female high school student-athletes wanting to play in the Women’s National Basketball Association (WNBA), they only have about a 0.02 percent chance of making it (www.ncaa.org).

Football is one of the biggest sports in America and is especially popular in the South. It’s an American tradition, and making to the National Football League (NFL) is a dream many of our young boys have today. But what are their chances of someone actually making it to the league? About 9 in 10,000 or 0.09 percent. The number of high school senior student -athletes that will play for an NCAA men’s football team is 5.8 percent. From there, only about 2 percent of those athletes will be drafted by an NFL team. And what’s even more mind-opening is that the average career of an NFL player is only three to five years (www.ncaa.org).

Baseball is America’s sport; it’s our pastime. Unfortunately, only a handful of our high school student-athletes will make it to play in Major League Baseball (MLB).

About 5.6 percent of our high school student-athletes will continue their career with an NCAA baseball team. And of that small percentage, 10.5 percent will be drafted by a professional Major League Baseball (MLB)team.

The chance of a high school senior student-athlete playing baseball in the MLB is a mere 0.015 percent (www.ncaa.org).

We should never give up on our dreams. Goals bring out the best in us because they drive our ambition and push us through some of our darkest times, but in having lofty aspirations, we must also be made aware of the facts surrounding the situation.

With hard work and dedication, you could be the next Tiger Woods or Michael Jordan, but getting there won’t be easy. On your journey to the big leagues, remember there will be obstacles along with the way and odds that seem impossible, but never give up on your dreams and always go “Beyond the Game!”