Cat's Out of the Bag
"If I had asked you five days ago to name the squeakiest, cleanest, but most dominant athlete in all of sports you would have said Tiger Woods wouldn't you?"
– Michael Felger
Felger: "This is why it's gone to the next level. We have the audio. We have the visual in the form of all these text messages. What makes a story newsworthy is having video or audio to show the public something. They have copies of the text messages from Tiger to hoe bag number two. That's great stuff! That's salacious good stuff. When you can hear it, and when you can see it, it's over. This has gone to the next level. By making this public statement and apology he is admitting that the media has caught him, so how much of a surprise is it from now on when other cocktail waitresses come forward? It's not going to be a surprise now. Tiger's taken that element of "Got you!" away from the media. If he had admitted this from day one, the release of this voicemail and the text messages wouldn't have been nearly as damaging. No audiotape, no hard evidence, he's not releasing this public statement. So he's still a weasel. Didn't you think the last guy this would happen too would be Tiger Woods? Isn't he the last guy? I always thought he was so insulated. You're leaving a voicemail on your side action's voicemail? What do you have an agent for?! Go have him call Ms. Grubbs and have him tell her to erase her name from her voicemail!"
The Collin-tary: It was September 3rd, 2007. A beautiful New England Labor Day weekend was coming to a close on a sun splashed Monday at TPC Boston. Tiger Woods and Phil Mickelson walked side by side in the final group for 18 of the most exciting holes played on the PGA Tour that season. Never more than 20 yards from Woods for all 67 of his shots, I was amazed at his poise, passion, and intensity. As a 21-year-old sports reporter, I was in awe walking alongside the greatest golfer who ever lived.
Sure, Mickelson's 66 was good enough for a two-stroke win over Woods that Monday. However, walking to the 18th green I felt as if I was leading the tournament. I remember picking up my gape to keep up with the two legends as they marched up the fairway. The roars coming from the bleachers filled beyond capacity, the gallery ten rows deep, the children balancing on Fathers shoulders, and the fans hanging from tree limbs was enough to send shivers down my spine. The enormous grin on my face was clearly visible to the cameras of NBC, much to the delight of my family and friends watching from home. It was truly an electric moment, and a memory I will treasure for a lifetime.
While Mickelson collected his hardware and supplied the masses with interviews, I desperately searched for Woods in the chaos outside the scoring trailer. Despite his second place finish, I wanted to say I met the greatest golfer ever to walk the face of the earth. After a few frantic moments, I found Tiger signing autographs for hundreds of kids patiently waiting outside the clubhouse.
Knowing I needed quotes from the winner, I raced back to the 18th green to be part of Mickelson's meeting with the local media. I heard phrases from established Boston media personnel a likening the atmosphere we had witnessed to that of the Patriots in the Super Bowl, or Red Sox in the World Series. Thinking I had missed my chance with Tiger, I disappointedly returned to the clubhouse 20 minutes later only to find Woods still signing away. In fact, the autograph session lasted nearly an hour following his bitter defeat at the hands of his closest rival.
After the crowd subsided, it felt as if I was the only child left, patiently waiting, just hoping for a chance to experience true greatness. Tiger graciously asked if I was seeking an autograph. Somehow I stuttered and stumbled through some sort of sentence identifying myself as a member of the media seeking a brief interview. He shrugged his shoulders and said, "Sure buddy". Knowing I was in over my head, I felt as if I had just asked the best looking girl in high school to the prom. BUT THIS TIME HE SAID YES!
If it weren't for my notepad and voice recorder I wouldn't be able to tell you what questions I asked Woods, or for that matter what his responses were. All I can tell you is that brief time I spent with Tiger, and the handshake that ensued, will forever be etched in my mind as one of the most exhilarating, humbling, and surreal experiences of my life.
Listen, I'm not trying to defend Tiger Woods cheating on his wife. In no way are all his actions becoming of a man possessing the values he constantly preaches. However, Woods has already admitted to his sins and will undoubtedly handle this "scandal" with the poise and class he has displayed when faced with every adverse situation in his life. Sure, Tiger doesn't deserve the privacy and respect the media once granted him as a squeaky clean superstar. But he and his family are still entitled to the basic freedoms afforded all Americans including personal privacy to work through these trying times. He's also entitled to be innocent until proven guilty. The coming days will no doubt bring charges from gold diggers everywhere trying to make a quick buck by proclaiming they too have slept with the world's number one golfer.
All I'm trying to do is state the simple truth that nobody's perfect. Even the great athletes, and great people of this world are going to make mistakes. It's not like Tiger took steroids, sneakily improved his lie in a tournament when the cameras weren't looking, used illegal equipment, or committed some sort of crime. He did nothing to disgrace the game of golf or break the law. All he's guilty of is being human.
I would hate to see millions of golf fans, and more importantly a future generation of golfers, never look at Tiger the same. They are entitled to experience the same feeling I had in the pit of my stomach while watching arguably, the greatest athlete ever dominate the sport of golf. Let's not forget that while Tiger may deserve most of what's coming to him, we are fortunate to bear witness to his greatness. There are no do-overs in life, but even legends deserve a mulligan.
