Tiger Accident Clippings, Vol. 9
/The hits just keep on coming as the New York Daily News reveals a sixth women linked to Tiger Woods. Sports By Brooks has photos of the latest and raises the question of whether we may be seeing some imposters now or in the near future, in part because of Tiger opening the door by not speaking publicly about what he meant by "transgressions."
That topic came up in the SI Confidential this week which also discusses the ratings impact, the marriage, possible heckling and other elements of the Tiger case.
Herre: The real eye-opener for me has been how TMZ.com and Radaronline.com have been cited as credible sources by AP and ESPN, even though the websites' sourcing is beyond flimsy. The fact is, we really don't know what's true and what's not.
Evans: There are no facts, really. All we know is that Tiger isn't in control of what's out there. We have some text messages and a voicemail, but we have no bulletproof evidence of Tiger "knowing" any of these women in the Biblical sense. At this point perception is much more powerful than whatever the reality is.
Shipnuck: Farrell, then what are the transgressions he's apologizing for? Missing that putt at the Barclays?
Tiger issued a written statement that was shown on NBC and posted on his site apologizing for his absence from Sunday's Chevron final round.
Bob Harig writes:
For what it's worth, attendance at the tournament, whose proceeds go to the foundation, was in the same ballpark as it was two years ago -- about 65,000 spectators for the week -- when Woods played and won (he missed last year's tournament due to injury). That could be due to the fact that many bought tickets expecting him to play.
They were offered a refund or a 20 percent discount next year -- one way or another that affects the bottom line -- and who knows how the events of the past week will impact the charitable efforts?
That is why you can't help but feel for some of the folks who work for Woods. More than 40 are employed by the Tiger Woods Foundation, which raises money through this tournament, the AT&T National and two other events called Tiger Jam and The Block Party.
The cloud that hovers over Woods spits rain on them, too.
At least he offered thanks to his "tireless, dedicated staff" in a statement Sunday on his Web site.
Perhaps he realizes, along with everything else, the predicament he's put them in.
David Feherty chimed in with comments to Connell Barrett and predictably blasted the coverage of Tiger's private life.
"I'm sick of it, all the coverage," Feherty fumed. "Lord knows, my private life is ghastly, so when I see someone's private business talked about night and day, over and over, it bothers me. It's a bad state of affairs [in the media]. You're talking about other people's misery, and this has been all over the tabloid shows," even Nancy Grace, the HLN program that sometimes covers missing-person cases. "I wouldn't mind a show on how she disappears. Everyone is so nosy. I can see it now. This is gonna be a movie. There will be books. You know, people have a right to work through problems on their own, without all the attention. Tiger plays golf, but he's a very private figure. The way the tabloids feast on private misery makes me sick and angry."
Scott Michaux addresses whether this will impact Tiger's quest to win majors.
For all of his gifts, Woods' greatest weapon in his arsenal of dominance has been his will.
This sordid situation has clearly caught Woods off stride. Unlike all of his previous challenges, this was something he seemed utterly unprepared for. You need only listen to him in that disturbing voicemail to his alleged mistress to tell just how out of sorts this ordeal has made his previously charmed life.
We've never heard that voice from him. It was desperate. It was stammering. It was confused. It was scared.
John Hopkins believes Woods will not return next year as his former self and suggests ways to rehab his image, including sacking his advisory team.
The public will not regard him as they once did and nor will the players. Indeed there is even a possibility that he may not play as well as he has done in the past because some of the previous certainties can no longer apply.
All we've heard from Woods in the 14 years he's lorded over the international scene is cocksure confidence. We've heard him angry. We've heard him disappointed. But we've never heard him anything less than unwavering.
PR guy Mark Borkowski on the public relations mishandling by Tiger lawyer Mark NeJame:
Little is known of him beyond the golf course. As a consequence, the hunt for a method to breach the PR stockade began at the first sign of weakness, mere hours after the kerfuffle in Florida. It's going to be impossible for Woods and NeJame to prepare fully for the actions of the women at the heart of the brouhaha, who are looking for ways to put themselves in the public spotlight.
An attempted media cover-up plot is far worse for the brand than any "transgression" Woods may have committed. Power and privilege – and the perception that a prosperous star is acting differently because of who he is – are only likely to whet the appetite of a prurient – and potentially resentful – press and public for months of revelations.
The New York Times featured a Noam Cohena-authored front page story on computer generated news reports, including the recreation of Elin slamming a golf club into the back window of Tiger's truck (thanks reader Tim).
Michael McCarthy reports on the race to land the first interview with Tiger. You'll be shocked to learn that calls are not being returned.
I doubt it'll be TMZ since they are not reporting that Tiger design business head and travel agent Bryon Bell is getting married next week. Tiger is the best man. TMZ is also reporting the name of a new attorney representing Tiger named Jay Lavely.
And finally, during a timeout at Sunday's Houston Texans/Jacksonville Jaguars football game, SI's Bill Frakes captured this image of a blond woman chasing a Tiger mascot clad in red shirt and Nike hat. Worse for Tiger, everyone in the photo--including the police officer--is laughing.