What do we really know about Golf’s Tiger Woods? 081607

Who is Tiger Woods?

He is perhaps the most famous person on the planet and undoubtedly its most famous athlete. And when all is said and done in a career that seems to be flying by, he may also become known to everyone as the greatest athlete who ever lived.

So – with credentials like that, how come we don’t know what Eldrick “Tiger” Woods is really like?

Here’s basically what we do know: He was born in 1975 to a soldier and golf fanatic named Earl and his half-Thai half-Chinese wife and as a result of a mixed heritage he describes himself as “Cablinasian.” We know he was on the Mike Douglas Show at the age of two with Bob Hope and Jimmy Stewart. We know he was a playing prodigy who won tournaments through grade school, high school, Stanford and he hasn’t stopped since. He dated some girls, married a Swedish model and they had a baby girl a few months ago. He also has two dogs, lives in Florida, drives a Buick and has a big frikin’ boat aptly named “Privacy.”

That’s about it.

But what about the good stuff? Is he a Republican or a Democrat? Is Timbaland or Celine Dion on his iPod? A beer or wine guy? Does he even drink?

In a society that is sickeningly obsessed with celebrity, how come the guy who is at the top of the fame ladder remains as much of a mystery today as he was when he first introduced himself 10 years ago saying, “Hello world?”

It’s because, as good as Tiger Woods is at golf, he is 10 times better at keeping his business his – and our collective noses out of it.

What a refreshing change.

He should teach others how to do it. We’d all be better off.

Example: How much do we know about Barry Bonds? Far too much right? Wouldn’t both we and he be better served if he was as much as a mystery as Woods? Instead of lamenting a momentous record being beaten like Hank Aaron’s, we would have ignorantly and blissfully cheered when Bonds crossed home plate.

Michael Vick would be a quarterback in the NFL known for running before passing instead of running dog fights. Pacman Jones would have been that fabulous cornerback with the cute name.

Instead, when famous folks don’t behave themselves they amplify their troubles because they love to talk about it in the press. And the folks they hang out seemingly live to blab to the fact-starved 4th estate.

When was the last time you heard a negative word from a Tiger Woods associate?

If you can’t remember, the answer is “never.”

What about a fellow PGA tour player?

That’s actually happened a few times and when it has, the results have been spectacular.

Earlier this year Rory Sabbatini said after losing to Tiger, "The funny thing is, after watching him play last Sunday, I think he’s more beatable than ever."

Flash ahead a few months and at Firestone, with Sabbatini sporting a one-shot lead going into the final round, that same "beatable" Tiger won by 8.

On Sunday at the PGA Tiger found himself yet again in the final pairing with some one who once uttered a disparaging word, Stephen Ames. At last year’s World Match Play Ames said, "Anything can happen in match play, especially where he’s hitting it."

On that occasion Tiger birdied the first six holes and seven of the first eight. It was over on the 10th green. On Sunday it was over on the second. Ames bogeyed his first two holes and went on to shoot a 76 – and still with an “oh-fer” in the majors.

Woods collected his 13th.

Unlike Sabbatini and Ames, most of his fellow players know that Tiger is their meal ticket. Just be playing at the same era, they are reaping huge financial rewards so why take a whack at the money tree?

Those who try are quickly brought into line.

If only other celebrities would use Woods as a model. It would do both them and us a huge favor. What these tabloid addicted sports celebs don’t get is, one of the reasons Tiger Woods is so popular is because of his privacy fixation.

Any warts he has – and you know he’s got to have them – are not for public consumption. 

What we don’t know – doesn’t hurt his reputation.

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