But now that the rumors have more or less been confirmed — if not specifically — I mostly feel sad about it all. I don’t feel sorry for Tiger in particular, but for his family. I wonder what his Dad would say — but then, how do we know Earl wasn’t a philanderer as well? It makes one wonder …

My wife has longed teased me about my interest in Tiger Woods. She likes to say I’m in love with him, that he’s my boyfriend! But I’m always quick to correct her: “No, I’m in love with Steve Sricker!” But I’m in awe of Tiger Woods, and I find him fascinating for reasons varied and numerous. My opinion of him as a person has always been … well, it’s hard to have one, because we really don’t know him. He doesn’t let us know him. But I always had a little bit of an uneasy feeling about him in that regard. He always seemed like he needed to lighten up. Let Phil (or whoever the most recent offender is) off the hook for saying the “wrong thing” about him now and then.

I’m trying not to take an unhealthy interest in the prurient aspects of this story. But I still find the historical aspects extremely compelling. However well he manages to recover from this — on the golf course and off — I think that down the road, when golf historians are analyzing Tiger Woods’s career, the phrases “before the accident/scandal” and “after the accident/scandal” are going to be used a lot – much in the way Hogan’s career is so divided (but also in a very different way). “Conveniently,” it comes pretty close to what you have to think would be about the halfway point of his competitive years.

I don’t think he’s going to lose much, if anything, in the way of sponsors. He may well return to top form in tournament play. He may well bury Nicklaus’s majors record — deeply and forever. But everything has changed now. And we’ll never look at Tiger quite the same way again. For better or worse.

If you want to have some fun with this current event, check out this contest.

http://thegolfteestore.typepad.com/the-golf-tee-store/2009/12/contest-.html