The Long Fall

Photo courtesy of NewsOne.com

The news of Tiger Woods' infidelity over the last couple of weeks has rocked the sports world. His reputation for being a family man shattered. So how does one look at Tiger Woods now? On the golf course, he's my generation's Jack Nicklaus. His level of play and era of dominance is unmatched. His passion for competition is admirable. But that's where the love ends. Off the course, he's made a grievous mistake. There are so many aspects to Tiger's misdeeds, it makes it difficult to support him.

First, this incident shows Tiger to be clueless. Surely he had to have known someone was going to find out about his indiscretions. With as many as seven women (and counting, it seems) coming out as his mistresses, he had dug a hole so deep, there was no getting out. Did he not realize his reputation would be destroyed if these relationships came to public light? Second, this whole saga shows Tiger to be arrogant. If he had thought all this through and thought he could sweep it under the rug because he's Tiger Woods, than he's an arrogant fool. Third, Tiger underestimated the media's ability to gather information. What started as a car crash on Thanksgiving became a bigger story when it was revealed his wife wasn't with him in the car and it was in the middle of the night. By the time reporters verified everything, Woods' skeletons were jumping out of the closet.

Tiger is now on the same level as Tom Brady and, to a lesser extent, Kobe Bryant. Tom had an affair with a supermodel than broke up with his pregnant fiance Bridget Moynahan and married the supermodel. As a result, Tom could win twenty Super Bowl titles and I still wouldn't buy his jersey. Kobe had an incident that nearly got him thrown in jail, but he has since been "on the straight and narrow" with his wife and two daughters. Regardless of whatever he does at this point, when you have that many extramarital affairs, let alone the morass that Brady and Bryant found themselves in with one indiscretion, your reputation is gone. Sad for Tiger, as he is one of the game's greats.