Tiger Woods Apology: Pencil In a Bogey For The First Hole

As Dan Hicks famously said after Tiger Woods sunk his 12-foot putt to tie Rocco Mediate on the 72nd hole of the 2008 US Open, “Expect anything different?”

Woods is not a politician nor is he an actor; he’s a professional golfer.

His speech was clearly scripted, he looked robotic and his mannerisms were worthy of a Razzi, which is exactly what you’d expect from a professional golfer making a speech that was broadcast to hundreds of millions of people.  

Public speaking critique and opinions on sincerity aside, Woods did come out of hiding and apologized just as the public, the media and his peers have been hounding him to do for 84 days.

But, that’s precisely why Woods’ week long attempt at rebuilding his image has so far come up short – it’s taking place 84 days after the fact; and after a 13 minute speech, we still don’t know much more than we knew last week.

We found out that he has indeed been in rehab since late December and will be returning to rehab tomorrow.

He “said” that his wife, Elin, did not physically attack him on the night of the accident or at any other time.

He also “said” that he has never done performance enhancing drugs.

Ok, fair enough…but here’s the problem, how believable is Tiger Woods’ word right now?  

Why did neighbors report hearing a domestic dispute the night of the accident and why were two golf clubs lying in the driveway while all of the back windows of his Escalade were smashed out?

Why did Woods refuse to speak with police about a simple fender bender?

Why was Woods being visited in Orlando by a Canadian doctor with links to HGH distribution?

Obviously Woods doesn’t owe anyone an explanation.  His wife and his family are the only people that deserve answers and to whom he is responsible; and needless to say, they already know the answers to most, if not all of these questions.

But if there was no domestic altercation or HGH usage, a simple explanation that might have added 30 seconds onto his 13 minute speech would have gone a long way towards completely squashing any further speculation by the public.

Aside from his speech ­- which was just the final step a week long sloppy, amateur-looking PR campaign - were the other steps really necessary?

Was it necessary for his wife to appear dressed head-to-toe in Nike gear yesterday?

Was it necessary to release photos that were meant to appear candid but were actually part of a pre-planned photo shoot conducted by the official photography company of the PGA Tour?

Was it necessary to make his speech at the PGA Tour headquarters?

Obviously it was not Woods’ intention, but all of this has come across as looking grossly insincere.

The public is not interested in photo shoots or carefully constructed, pre-rehearsed speeches.

The public is interested in a sincere, un-rehearsed, shoot from the hip apology and some answers to a few simple questions.

That’s all.

Had Woods done that three months ago, this whole ordeal would have been old news by now.  

Hiding out for 84 days before unveiling a staged PR campaign was all unnecessary.

Anyone with a television set, access to the internet or access to a newspaper has already formed their opinion of Tiger Woods over the past three months.

Nothing Woods could have said or done this week would have completely repaired the damage he’s done to himself, his family and the game of golf.

But in terms of the big picture, he has now appeared in public, he has apologized, and he is seeking help, all of which are steps in the right direction.

All in all, pencil is a bogey for Woods’ initial attempt at rebuilding his image.

But pencil in that bogey for the first hole.  His actions and level of sincerity over the next 17 holes will determine whether or not this Tiger has truly changed his stripes.