The Wonderful Thing About Tigers
Friday, February 19th, 2010“The wonderful thing about tiggers
Is tiggers are wonderful things!
Their tops are made out of rubber
Their bottoms are made out of springs!”
Today, Tiger Woods released a statement apologizing for his marital infidelity. The statement essentially tells the public and the press that he made a mistake, asks that the media leave him and his family alone, and insists that there was no violence in his marriage. I’m not exactly sure why Tiger’s actions are of such interest to me. I can appreciate his talents as a golfer, but I think the juice for me is not watching the train-wreck, but speculating about the challenge of rebuilding his image.
I like to think that I am a critical thinker. I think it’s fair to say that being cynical comes naturally to me. Unlike many ladies in “the biz”, my cynicism has a strong genetic base, but that’s another issue for another topic… Suffice it to say, I had my bullshit detector highly tuned for Tiger’s atonement. I watched it twice, and I have to say that I liked it. He confirmed that he had affairs. Check. He admitted he cheated. Check. He said that he played by different rules because his fame led him to believe that conventional rules need not apply. Check ++. He said that the details of what is to become of his marital life with Elin are personal, and finally, he was not available for questions. Smart.
I feel that Tiger’s real image “rehab” began with the February 2010 issue of Vanity Fair, featuring an Annie Leibovitz pictorial. Leibovitz commented: “Tiger is an intensely competitive athlete—and quite serious about his sport. I wanted to reveal that in these photos. And to show his incredible focus and dedication.” Um..yeah. I definitely saw focus and dedication; the kind I’d like to run my tongue all over. Let’s face it, golf duds tell the tale of “Dad” and are designed to homogenize even the hottest bod into the most suburban form. In contrast to the polite clapping, there is no room for a screaming boner in golf. Golf pants are carefully designed for the spectator to think only about the putt, NOT the putz. Leibovitz definitely got me, and the rest of the world thinking about what simmers under the khakis, but more importantly, reminded us that being a great golfer is not Tiger’s only asset and is probably not the only thing on his mind! For the first time, I saw Tiger as a sexual being, and it was then that my feelings about all of this shifted. I no longer saw him as a smarmy celeb, I saw him as hungry and raw and HUMAN…and THAT, I understand.
Prior to his troubles, Tiger has always been seen as a model of what an athlete and a man should aspire to. His newly revealed indiscretions do not detract from his accomplishments in life and on the golf course. They do not negate the obstacles he has overcome. The public now knows that Tiger Woods is not impervious to temptations…even stupid ones, and now must realize, by Tiger’s own admission that being famous opens ALL doors, not just ones leading in promising directions. We can no longer project onto Tiger something that he is not. He admitted his actions, and if you are reading this, you know how he could have greatly lessened his liability. I imagine he does too. At least I hope so. So, Tiger… if you are the real deal as integrity goes, I hope this works out for you. I’m not a big fan of sex addiction treatment, as I think it is misused as a blameless “quick fix”, but I do believe that taking a minute for introspection is a good idea for Tiger right about now. I also believe in second (which are VERY different from third) chances. Will he be “cured” of his “disease”? Only if you believe that sanitizing the layer of “personal shame” that contains the jargon will magically solve the deeper issues. Clearly he will need a cure of some sort to “cure” his image in the eyes of prospective sponsors. I think a good scrubbing won’t cut it, nor will time.
Tiger made some really dumb mistakes. He profited from the media, but now wants them to leave him and his family alone. It’s not going to happen. He can’t have it both ways, so he will need to pick an image he can live with (this time) and embrace it. If he wants to be a playboy, then the media can chase him, follow the divorce, and promptly lose interest in his estranged family. But if he truly loves Elin, his children, and the life he once knew, he’s going to have to be golden and the media will make sure of it. He can’t simultaneously plant his statement smack dab in the middle of an Accenture sponsored event, and then ask for privacy. Perhaps Tiger needs to understand how the world works before he can get a grip on his own life. He who lives by the sword is also doomed by it. It would be nice to see Tiger rebound with some sort of image in tact. The question is: now that we’ve seen his fervid form in a whole new way, will Tiger be willing to climb back into the rubber and springs? It should be interesting.