Tiger Woods’ legacy has been tainted. He has gone from being considered the best golfer of all times to being debased as a sex addict who has no respect for family values. This has been the first response for many sports fans, disappointed at Woods for straying from his image as the perfect athlete, the anthropologist, the faithful husband, to an insanely hot Swedish model.
A teary-eyed Woods recently apologized publicly for cheating on his wife, and said he is in therapy to overcome his issues.” Personally, I think a public speech was not necessary, but I respect the man for apologizing on national TV for a whopping 13 minutes.
Tiger is supposed to be a role model for the kids, the kind that parents say, One day, if you work hard, you can be as good as him.”
Any parent aware of the latest scandals will be hard-pressed to repeat this to their child anytime soon, and it seems that Tiger’s sponsors are taking the same route. So far, Gatorade, AT&T, Accenture, Gillette and Tag Heuer have dropped his endorsements, worth around $100 million combined. Even though sponsors have been quick to distance themselves from Woods, true fans should think twice before dismissing him as a failure.
First of all, consider his upbringing. Ever since Tiger could walk, he has been constantly pushed by his military father. He spent every free week competing, while his peers were out partying and chasing girls. Instead, Tiger was too busy winning three U.S. Amateur Championships in a row in his teenage years. His entire life was driven by an endless desire to win. He was a machine, carefully programmed by his overbearing father.
Tiger performed as planned. He has more career major wins and career PGA Tour wins than any other active golfer. He is the youngest player to achieve the career Grand Slam, and the youngest to win 50 tournaments on tour.
As the highest payed athlete in history, all the latest scandals reflect is the fact that he finally felt entitled to a reward for an entire life of hard work. He was living the rock-star lifestyle he had earned, but had put off his entire life.
So, even though Tiger’s humanity has often been questioned due to his astounding performances on the golf course, his latest wrongdoings only serve as a comforting reminder that he is human after all.
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