It was only a matter of time before the best (and crustiest) golf reporter of our time laid the wood to Tiger Woods:
I’ll tell you what Hogan, Palmer and Nicklaus were at their peak.
They were every bit as popular as Tiger, they endured similar demands on their time, but they handled it courteously, often with ease and enjoyment.
They were accessible, likable, knowable, conversant, as gracious in loss as they were in victory, and, above all, amazingly helpful to those of us in the print lodge who covered them.
That was their brand. All the things Tiger never was.
As for Tiger’s brand, boy, did that take a hit.
For all of the Tiger idolaters out there, it must have been like finding out that ice cream sundaes give you gonorrhea. [. . .]
I covered Tiger winning his 14 professional majors, but I can’t say I know him. I knew the smile he put on for TV. I knew the orchestrated remarks he granted us in his press-room interviews. I knew the air he punched when another outrageous putt went in the cup. That’s it.
I once made an effort to get to know the old silicone collector. Tried to arrange dinners with him for a little Q&A, on or off the record, his choice. But the closest I ever got was this word from his agent: "We have nothing to gain."
Now it’s too late.
I’m busy.
Itís a shame that Woods never got around to getting to know Jenkins. He just might have found one of the real friends he needs.
Meanwhile, Golf Digest’s Jaime Diaz — the golf writer who has known Woods the longest and best — provides this more in-depth article on Woods’ life, as well as the expectations and pressures that may have contributed to his secret life.
My view is this: If Dan never managed to know who Tiger was and cannot comment about him in at least semi-real time based on prior contact, then he ought put the entire matter aside. I’m busy too.
Tiger Woods is no different than any NBA, NFL or MLB player who is shot to stardom and are granted everything they have ever desired. It is a simple case of too much, too soon and too young.
Everybody piled on his bandwagon and the golf world made a fortune off him. He changed the way golf was viewed and introduced it to a whole new generation. Golf should be eternally grateful to him.
His sponsors, on the other hand, got what they deserved. If they are gullable enough to pin their repuation on one person then they get the good and the bad. If he had a morality clause then he needs to give them a refund.
I don’t think Jenkins can make an accurate comparison to Hogan, Palmer and Nicklaus as their era, accessibility and expectations were completely different from today’s world. They played in a time when golf was seldomly covered in the news and far less on TV. For all we know, there actions behind closed doors may have been worse than Tiger’s but there wasn’t a camera/phone/video/text in everyone’s hand to record it. Plus, there wasn’t 24×7 new coverage desperate for constant headlines.
If Tiger wasn’t gracious to an old curmudgeon than he needs a few lessons in manners not a public lambasting.
Tiger is human and people need to deal with it. I do not condone what he did as he is a cheat, a liar, and a manipulator of his personal life. However, he is still one of the greatest golfers of his time …maybe all time.
It seems like if you weren’t ready for El Tigre to screw you, he wasn’t ready to be your friend. There’s lots of people like that.