My take on Tiger Woods

SPORTING GOODS

One comment and then I'll let the vultures continue to have at it ...

I have to admit to a certain disappointment with Eldrick's statement of yesterday:

"Although I am a well-known person and have made my career as a professional athlete, I have been dismayed to realize the full extent of what tabloid scrutiny really means. For the last week, my family and I have been hounded to expose intimate details of our personal lives. The stories in particular that physical violence played any role in the car accident were utterly false and malicious. Elin has always done more to support our family and shown more grace than anyone could possibly expect.

"But no matter how intense curiosity about public figures can be, there is an important and deep principle at stake which is the right to some simple, human measure of privacy. I realize there are some who don't share my view on that. But for me, the virtue of privacy is one that must be protected in matters that are intimate and within one's own family. Personal sins should not require press releases and problems within a family shouldn't have to mean public confessions."

It seems to me that, like too many others, The World's Greatest Golfer wants to have his cake and eat it too. That is, there exists in the statement a contention that he should enjoy the fruits of his celebrity, but shouldn't have to submit to any of the (positive or negative) publicity that that celebrity perforce creates.

After having earned hundreds of millions of dollars from our tabloid society, TWGG (and former Stanford attendee) should know better than to think he's immune from paying it back in some way.