Steven M. Finkelstein

A few days ago, Tiger Woods issued a public apology for his “repeated transgressions,” namely the many, many times that he cheated on his wife, Elin. Woods read a prepared statement, took no questions, and allowed only those he personally selected to be there. Some people say that was arrogant of him, and perhaps it was. But I think the people who classify it as such are deliberately ignoring what is obviously a fundamental aspect of Woods’ personality, and part of what has made him the greatest golf phenom the world has ever seen. Woods has been described as a control freak, and I think, having watched him, both on the course and in his private life (what I’ve been able to see of it) in the past decade, I completely agree with that assessment. Woods is a person who thrives on control. He is completely in control of himself on the golf course, only rarely showing the slightest of emotions…perhaps a barely perceptible grimace and shake of his head when he misses a putt. Even his trademark fist pump when he sinks a long birdie seems contrived. That’s what allows him to be so dominant:  he appears to have such an ironclad grip on what he is and what he’s doing at all times. He is the consummate athlete, always the professional, appearing almost robotic at times. I think at some point Woods felt like “hey, it goes over so well on the golf course, why not have it translate  to all other aspects of my life?” And it worked, up until the fateful car wreck that has thrust his private life into the public eye, really for the first time since this once-in-a-lifetime athlete burst onto the scene.

Now, Woods has no choice but to reveal more of himself than he ever has before, if he wants to salvage not only endorsement deals, but his professional career. Oh, and his marriage. Let’s not forget that. And if he seemed like a cold and emotionless robot while delivering his written statement, what we must remember is how difficult this is for him. He has never talked about anything remotely like this before, and it is unfortunate that the speech that allows the most insight into his life is also concerning what is most probably his biggest failing. He talked about letting people down: his fans, his wife, the sponsors, and it’s true, he did all of those things. But I just don’t feel that I can judge him as harshly as some reporters have. Yes, his actions were reprehensible, but I think the reasons that he gave for doing what he did were very valid. He did indeed think that he was above what is normally thought of as right and wrong, that the rules didn’t apply to him. And how did he start thinking that way, that he was a god among men? Well, it was because of us. It was because of the fans, it was because of the sponsors, it was because he had been so successful at creating this mythos around himself, this idea of Tiger as being just a bit more than human. We were the ones who propped him up; we were the ones who put him on that pedestal. Yes, the failings were his, and I don’t condone them, but I understand them. 

And then there’s a couple of other key issues. Everyone is saying that Elin is this poor damsel now, mistreated by her husband, the serial philanderer…yes, she is. But she’s also a gold digger who married Woods for his money every bit as much as for himself, and if you doubt that, consider the rumors that she’s only going to be willing to stay with him if he forks over a few hundred million dollars. They’ll stick together; the two of them will sit down and sign a contract just like Woods putting his “x” on the dotted line for Nike or Gillette. She’s not “staying with him for the kids.” That’s bullshit, and everybody knows it. Then there’s the issue of the reporters, who are bitching and moaning because Woods didn’t take their questions. The only things that they were going to be asking (other than when he’d be returning to golf), is the exact and the most sordid details of the extramarital affairs! Reporters are, at their core, gossip mongers, no matter how much they try to paint themselves with the brush of integrity. Think of all the details that came out during the Bill Clinton/Monica Lewinsky scandal. For the love of God, I didn’t need to hear about that shit, and guess what? I don’t need to hear what happened between Woods and some waitress at the IHOP either! I can pretty well guess, not that I want to.

All in all, this has been a sordid business, and neither Woods nor Elin have come out looking like remotely decent people. But the bottom line for me is this. I don’t really care what Woods is doing in the bedroom, I care what he’s doing on the gold course. Golf is such a boring sport anyway, if Woods isn’t playing I’m not going to be watching, like another third of the potential audience. And if he was arrogant with his apology, I don’t think we should be surprised, and I don’t think he should be crucified for it. The fact is, he’s arrogant and aloof because he tried on that persona at a very young age, found that it fit, and, looking around, he saw that no one had a problem with it! Far from it; he was revered, admired, celebrated! Woods is just being Woods. He’s being true to his nature. The only thing he needs to do to balance the books is go back to doing what he does best: winning tournaments, promoting shaving cream, and being a smug, smarmy, self-assured asshole. And, apparently, banging cocktail waitresses.

This entry was posted on Friday, February 26th, 2010 at 1:53 am and is filed under Opinions, Rants, and Musings. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.