ORLANDO, Fla. -- Fine, don't listen to the motley media ilk.
Do what you will with the advice from your army of mouthpieces, who are discussing the best corrective course of action to fix the worst string of public-relations disasters in a previous spotless career.
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| Keeping mum about his personal life has mostly worked for Tiger Woods, but he needs to clear the air about the past few days. (AP) |
With every passing hour that he remains holed up and mostly unresponsive, public sentiment is turning against Tiger Woods, a guy with a Teflon image, a Q-rating that's off the charts and a public persona that has made him a role model to millions of impressionable fans.
The tide of sentiment is growing into a tsunami, even among the striped one's faithful.
It has come to this: Woods is being excoriated by visitors to his own website, where his evasiveness and stonewalling regarding the details surrounding his mysterious late-night car crash and alleged extra-marital relationship have turned the site into a free-fire zone:
Mmmmm, don't you think taking ownership of the situation would be the smartest thing to do? The longer you procrastinate, the more spin - negative or otherwise - there is out there. If wifo went ballistic because she thought - rightly or wrongly - you strayed, then THAT'S OK! Whose wife wouldn't? If you need to tweak truth, so be it - tell us she was mistaken – whatever ... but YOU SHOULD FIRE YOUR P.R. ADVISORS NOW!!!! They're ding a horrible job, and if you don't have any, I suggest you pick a good one up from here on out. Step up - take control - move on. If a president can do it, you sure as h**l can.
You get the gist of that posting. It's hard to argue the thrust.
We're three days into the double-edged affair, and sans any context whatsoever from the Woods camp, select websites have begun reporting as indisputable fact (despite the lack of indentified sources) that a domestic spat prompted the crash at 2:30 a.m.
Sometimes, the old saying is wrong as it relates to setting the record straight. No news is, in fact, bad news.
For years, Woods has hidden behind a veil of isolation and privacy, if not the ivy-covered walls of his country club enclave, Isleworth. Far more often than not, whenever some minor annoyance has reared its head in the golf world, Woods and his management group have waited for it to blow over, knowing that his next tournament appearance might be weeks away. By then, whatever the news flash of the moment, it would have been long forgotten. It almost always worked.
But police blotter fare is a different matter entirely. Clearly, the duck-and-cover tactic isn't working. In fact, it's only contributing to the widening sentiment that Woods has been hiding facts, not to mention avoiding Florida Highway Patrol investigators.
After avoiding his scheduled interviews with FHP for two days, on Sunday, he "lawyered up," as they say on the cop shows, and canceled on the agency yet again. Then he issued a statement on his website where he said the fault for the accident lies solely with him, that his wife acted like a heroine, and he chastised anybody who painted any other scenario.
But he never bothered to explain where he was headed or how he crashed his car into a tree situated some 50 feet from his own driveway, after hopping the curb on the other side of the street. If there's an innocent explanation, as he implied, serve it up.
Woods employs an armada of managers, spokespersons and website writers -- more than any other sports figure I can think of. Off the top of my head, between his charitable foundation, personal spokesman, his IMG management and such, I can think of a half-dozen different founts of potential information at his disposal. Either they aren't giving him the counsel he seemingly needs, he's not listening, or he's getting bad advice and choosing to follow it.
Because for once in his life, these embarrassing episodes are screaming for clarity. Not a word has been offered about the National Enquirer scandal, even as the alleged "other woman" reportedly heads to California to speak with a prominent celebrity attorney about how to dispute the facts of the story. She has repeatedly denied any relationship with Woods, occasionally using her Facebook page to address the allegations. If she stages a press conference to clear her reputation, that issue is going to seriously explode.
A poll on the celebrity gossip website TMZ.com on Sunday asked simply: "Is Tiger hiding something." At 3:25 p.m. ET, almost 17,000 votes had been cast, with the number growing by hundreds every five minutes. And 95 percent said yes.
Meanwhile, it's been mostly the sound of crickets from the Woods camp. That's his prerogative, of course. But it's a needlessly reckless path.
"This is a private matter and I want to keep it that way," said the statement attributed to Woods on his website. "Although I understand there is curiosity, the many false, unfounded and malicious rumors that are currently circulating about my family and me are irresponsible."
Then here's a thought: Turn on the lights and make the cockroaches scatter. If it's a simple traffic boo-boo, explain it.
It has grown so ridiculous that Woods' handlers couldn't be bothered to issue a mere "no comment." On Saturday night, after Woods' agent told FHP officers not to bother driving to his mansion because he was not going to speak with them for a second consecutive day, IMG had nothing to offer. No rhyme, no reason for why Woods was blowing off a pre-arranged meeting with the investigators was offered. Sunday, Orlando attorney Mark NeJame phoned the FHP and informed the agency that he was handling Woods' car-crash case and that the interview, again, was off. A call to NeJame's office was not immediately returned.
It was as though the Woods camp was saying, go ahead, assume the worst. Because at this point, the worst is about all we have to mull.
For 13 years, Woods has represented a paragon of virtue, a few ill-timed curse words and heaved clubs notwithstanding. He's donated millions to his charity and helped untold thousands of kids get some academic direction. He's served as a multi-cultural inspiration in divisive times. But at the moment, that's all been forgotten because he won't step up, fess up or truly clear the air.
If becoming a national punchline -- Letterman and Leno will surely be weighing in soon enough -- isn't bad enough, then consider the ink being slung around on your own website, presumably from people rooting for you. Another sampling:
Does this mean you will be on a reality show? You need to talk to Gene Simmons before you do, although he may make you wear a Kiss T-shirt.
Or this:
Tiger, give Elin the boot. I wouldn't trust her with my kids. Temper?!!! Her childish actions, look were it has gotten you. Protect your children. No telling what she'll do next! Yes, she is "Ghetto."
Brutal stuff, unless you're a nutball like Dennis Rodman.
There are a trillion examples in sports where honesty, or at least some degree of full disclosure, has bought a prominent athlete some currency with the public. That path eventually led to forgiveness. Even for the likes of Kobe Bryant. Andy Pettitte came clean on the steroid front and survived just fine. They all faced the music, but Tiger is turning a deaf ear.
Makes you wonder, with that posse of spin doctors, media massagers and lawyers, when did Steve Williams take over your public-relations chores, too?
