10:24AM
RealClearSports: We Don't Need to Know About Tiger
10:24 AM
By Art Spander
For RealClearSports.com
THOUSAND OAKS, Calif. -- This was in the winter of ’97. Tiger Woods was a pro only a few months but long enough to win a tournament that let everyone know of his coming greatness. He was in the interview tent at Riviera for the Nissan/L.A. Open, where there were so many people trying to get in that seats had to be assigned.
A woman reporter from one of those TV gossip programs, the type that deal with celebrities and hearsay, was asking Tiger about his social life. When he dismissed her inquiry, saying, "I don't talk about those things,'' she screamed out, "But you have to. We need to know.''
Read the full story here.
© RealClearSports 2009
For RealClearSports.com
THOUSAND OAKS, Calif. -- This was in the winter of ’97. Tiger Woods was a pro only a few months but long enough to win a tournament that let everyone know of his coming greatness. He was in the interview tent at Riviera for the Nissan/L.A. Open, where there were so many people trying to get in that seats had to be assigned.
A woman reporter from one of those TV gossip programs, the type that deal with celebrities and hearsay, was asking Tiger about his social life. When he dismissed her inquiry, saying, "I don't talk about those things,'' she screamed out, "But you have to. We need to know.''
Read the full story here.
© RealClearSports 2009
Reader Comments (2)
Should we respect Tiger & Elin's privacy? Probably. Ordinarily, it should be kept between husband and wife. But this isn't an ordinary celebrity. Improbably, this is THE sports mega-superstar, whose brand has been based on his image. How unfortunate that the very same people in our society who idolize him and want to be like him, buying the products he endorses, have found out that he is more human and like them than they thought.
I have always been puzzled by the mismatch between what pro golfer images we see on television versus what we encounter when attending a tournament (the latter, as a fan: being ignored, disrespected, and reminded to "shut up" when within a pro's hearing distance).
If the professional game of golf drops in stature from this, they might give this idea a thought: give the attending fans a little respect once in a while!
Cheers Art, you are the voice of why we love golf so much...you show it to us like it really is.