Mr. Blog's Tepid Ride

April 8, 2010

Are you sick of Tiger Woods? I had enough of him long before the sex scandal broke. He’s arrogant and aloof. His father was a pushy attention-craving annoyance. But now he’s back and he’s in a new Nike commercial where we discover he’s “learned his lesson.”

Really? I don’t think so, and it has nothing to do cheating on his wife and screwing strippers. The lesson I want him to learn has to do with screwing the public.

There are a lot of people who say that Tiger (even the name is pompous) Wood’s private life is none of our business, not mine, not yours. This is a private affair (so to speak) between Tiger and his wife. Sorry, I don’t buy that.

As a professional golfer, Tiger is a public figure, but that alone doesn’t justify having his personal life scrutinized under a microscope. And I’m not advocating that he has a camera in his face 24/7, even a womanizing serial wife cheater deserves a modicum of privacy, but Tiger wants to be left totally alone, and that can’t be.

Tiger, what you do with your life is the public’s business. You made it that way.

Tiger treads daily on his public image to earn a living. I don’t mean on the golf course, that’s where he makes the least portion of his income. He shills for Nike. He’s in ads for expensive watches. He “earns” millions and millions of dollars by being the public face of a variety of products. Each one of these is based on the fact that the public doesn’t just like him, the public loves him, the public is invested in him. He knows that. He uses that. On his own website is a lengthy section of Tiger clothes and golf equipment that he himself sells. Will wearing a Tiger t-shirt make you a better golfer? Of course not, but people buy them because they love Tiger. That is the key to his fortune! Yes, Tiger is the best golfer, but there have been other best golfers before him, and even now there are golfers in his class, but none reaches the level of public adoration and mainstream fame that Tiger has. He knows it, he uses that love and fame to his advantage. He takes your love and turns it into his fortune.

Then the scandal broke and he didn’t want to be splashed all over the press. He didn’t want to be on the news every night. Can you blame him? But to suddenly shut the door on his life and say to the public “this is none of your business” is hypocritical. He made his life the public’s business. He did magazine photo shoots with his baby for God’s sake! Tiger, I understand how you feel, but you created the situation, both with the public and with the strippers. You can’t use the attention to your advantage in good times and simply make it disappear in the bad times. Why does the public care about the scandal? You made them care!

Sorry Tiger. like any other celebrity, your life is played out in public. You’re a celebrity. You’re a superstore. You’ve held yourself up as a role model.

Now Tiger is back and he wants your money again. Now that he’s “learned his lesson” he wants you back in his life. When he’s happy. On his terms. The media attention is suddenly great again.

During the scandal you reversed, said you’re only human, you make mistakes, and you said you are not a role model. Great. So why is your face all over those Nike ads now?

Tiger, never mind those women you slept with, you’re the whore.

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