Tiger Woods Called a 'Lost Soul' by Stephen A. Smith Following Arrest

ESPN First Take panelist Stephen A. Smith called Tiger Woods a "lost soul" on Monday's program after news of the former world No. 1 golfer's DUI arrest in Florida broke.

"What you are witnessing today before your very eyes is not just an individual who has fallen from grace, it's an individual that finds it very difficult to look himself in the mirror, because he knows he got busted by the entire world for being the liar and the phony that he was at that particular moment in time," Smith said (h/t Golf.com's Josh Berhow).

"Until he gets it out of his mind to get beyond that, until he gets back to the point where he can give two cents about what anybody thinks or what anybody says and just goes about the business of getting himself healthy, he is going to be an absolute mess."

Woods, 41, was arrested on charges of driving under the influence at 3 a.m. ET Monday morning, per Scott Sutton of WPTV.com. He was released on his own recognizance at 10 a.m.

Smith said he believes Woods' troubles began in November 2009, when his extramarital affairs became public knowledge. Woods' then-wife Elin Nordegren reportedly chased him out of their home before he crashed his vehicle into a tree and police arrived on the scene. Nordegren and Woods later divorced in August 2010. 

"When he got busted, it's hard to look at the world and know that everyone sees you as the phony that you are, so he's been about the reclamation project of rebuilding his image so he can walk into a room every day, shake hands with folks, have interviews with him that aren't too probing," Smith said.

Woods has not won a major golf tournament since the incident and has spent the better part of four years battling back issues. His arrest comes a month after he underwent a fourth back surgery aimed at alleviating pain and enabling him to return to competitive golf.