Sports Then and Now

Tiger Woods is going to talk on Friday, but how much will he really say?

If the media is to be believed, when Tiger Woods speaks in public on Friday morning for the first time since his infamous accident last November it will be one of the biggest events in the history of sports. One teaser even went as far as to suggest that you will forever remember where you were when Tiger spoke. Really!?

Like many Americans, I have spent the last decade and a half watching with amazement the golf domination of Tiger Woods.

It isn’t just that he has won 14 major championships and millions of dollars in earning, but he has performed with both a consistency and a flair that has captured the interest and imagination of countless sports fans.

Even people who really don’t care much for golf often have not been able to stay away from the television when Woods is in the hunt at one of the major championships.

That aura has transcended to the advertising world as Tiger has become one of the most recognized “pitchmen” in the world as his multi-cultural heritage has made him a star around the globe.

Part of what made Woods so captivating was that even though his wealth and talent were well beyond the comprehension of most people, there was also still a human quality that helped him connect with those of us who could only dream of having such talent or wealth.

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Whether it was because Woods was first introduced to the world as a three-year old golf protégée or because of his close relationship with his parents or his million dollar smile, people from many diverse backgrounds were comfortable having Woods in their living rooms.

With a beautiful wife and most recently a pair of adorable children, Woods was publicly portrayed as having a near perfect life and being a loving husband and father.

Since his bazaar accident the night after Thanksgiving, we have learned ad nauseam that much of the persona of Woods was actually little more than a façade.

Now, after three months of tabloid headlines and multiple reports (some substantiated and others that are unsubstantiated) of his indiscretions, Woods is finally going to speak in public.

How much he will actually discuss about his past and his future is the subject of much speculation and debate across the media.

In an era when the media is always more than willing to beat a story to death, Woods has been a golden parachute over the last three months and his public comments on Friday will likely only add to the media frenzy.

But do those of us who don’t play professional golf or are not a Tiger mistress really care as much about this story as the media seems to believe we do?

I don’t know about you, but my life has been a bit too busy over the last three months to really care much about the sex life of a multi-millionaire.

Sure I would much rather see Tiger Woods on a golf course than on the front page of a tabloid or as the subject of an entertainment television expose, but I figure that Tiger made his choices and now must live with them.

The last three months have certainly been as tough for Tiger's children as for the golf star.

I have no idea how much, or little, his wife knew about the situation, but the ones I really feel sorry for are his children. Though too young to know much about the public firestorm that has surrounded their parents, they certainly have been impacted by the fact that their parents have been in and out of their lives over the last three months.

When I have been away from my two young children for a few days at a time over the last several months it has taken days for us to all recover and get back to a normal routine. I can only imagine just how unsettled Sam and Charlie must feel since it seems that they have been shuffled around quite a bit as their parents deal with this unfortunate situation.

My hope is that if nothing else, this situation calms down enough so that those children can get back to some kind of a normal life, whatever that make look like for them moving forward.

But the question remains; should you stop what you am doing on Friday and make sure to catch Tigers first public comments?

In a word, NO.

Don’t worry, you can be sure that the words will hit the internet within minutes and the television networks will be replaying the comments enough over the next few days to make sure you don’t miss anything.

Plus, considering that he is not answering questions, I really don’t think we will get an awful lot out of this public relations event.  Heck, Woods rarely shares much with the media when talking about his golf game, so you shouldn’t expect him to be particularly forthcoming when talking about his private life and public embarrassment.

If he does indeed return to golf and public life at some point, there will be plenty more opportunities to drag this story along for many more weeks and months.

So, Friday will be a big day for the Tiger Woods diehards, but it won’t be the end of the story. In contrary, it is only the beginning.