Tiger Woods is just the most recent in a long list of athletes who has failed not just his family and image but his fans as well. We hear all the time that what these people do on their own time is none of our business. I agree with that to a certain point but not when the individual involved has made hundreds of millions of dollars based on his image. If you want to ruin your marriage and family life, go right ahead as it is purely your decision but don't try to insult our intelligence by appearing in a million different commercials and pitch products. As it turns out you lied to and shamed your family. Why shouldn't we take anything you say with a grain of salt?
Earlier this year Tiger Woods became the World's first Billionaire athlete.
Why is it that these people deny these stories when they first get reported? This isn't the era of Babe Ruth or Mickey Mantle. You can't even compare it to the 90s. There are just so many media platforms out there that the truth in matters like this pretty much always comes out. In this era of Twitter and TMZ there is no hiding. People would probably be a lot more sympathetic if these guys admitted to their mistakes right away. The lame excuses these guys make only makes matters worse as the lies they tell are so bad that all it does is lead more people to dig into your personal life. Seriously, did anyone believe anything Tiger Woods or his agents said in the days after the accident?
Why is it that privacy only matters to these guys when they do something wrong? Where is Tiger Woods' search for privacy when he's doing commercials for Nike, Gatorate or Gillette? Where is his request for privacy when his picture gets plastered in sporting goods stores and billboards around the world? Where is his request for privacy when he's releasing his own video game everywhere and wants to be in the room of every kid with an XBox, PS3 or a Wii? Where is his request for privacy when he is making close to $100 million a year in endorsement money? He gets caught being an idiot and suddenly we are supposed to pretend that this is a private matter? I feel for his wife Elin Nordegren. Right now there are people digging into her life because of what Tiger Woods did.
I should mention that I have never been the world's biggest Tiger Woods fan. Don't get me wrong, you can't help but be impressed by his resume on the golf course but Tiger Woods the man has never been easy to root for. He's been an obnoxious bully and if he was anyone but Tiger Woods he would have faced a major backlash over the years. If you haven't seen it for yourself just go check out some of the Tiger Woods clips on Youtube. Golf holds itself to a ridiculous uptight standard that doesn't even let fans bring cameras or cell phones to a golf course yet Tiger Wood's antics get excused.
This isn't some new phenomenon either. Tiger has been cursing and throwing clubs around for a long time now. When he's not doing something himself he has his caddy to the dirty work for him. We've all seen his antics on TV. Remember him tossing someone's camera a couple of years ago? PGA Tour officials continue to look the other way because he's Tiger Woods.
I was in attendance for the Final Round of The Barclays earlier this year. My Brother and I considered following Tiger Woods around for the day but gave up on it after jut two holes. He doesn't interact with the fans at all. There were little kids yelling his name as he walked up the fairway and he wouldn't even look over and nod. Yet, his galleries were huge based on his name alone. We decided to follow Padraig Harrington instead and he was simply amazing. He was right there in contention with Tiger Woods but the contrast in their behavior on the course was remarkable. Harrington took time on each hole to interact with fans (especially little kids). Phil Mickelson was also really friendly with the crowd despite being way behind the leaders at this event. Watching Tiger Woods in person that day made me even happier that I have never rooted for him in his professional career.
The sporting world fell in love with Tiger Woods and his father in the mid 90s because it was a great story. It is just unfortunate that like so many others Tiger Woods the man is not half as easy to like as Tiger Woods the athlete. If you want to live a public life and make the ridiculous amount of money based on your name alone, you can't be a hypocrite and ask for privacy in a matter like this. You can't have it both ways.
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