One Woman’s View On Tiger

I haven’t said word one about Tiger Woods since Thanksgiving and the whole late night accident, women coming out of the woodwork scenario.  Yeah, I’ve talked to my mother about it a little bit I haven’t written about it for one reason: it’s not any of my business what Tiger Woods does in his personal life.  I really don’t care if he bangs a new woman nightly.  I think it’s sad for his family and I feel for his wife but it doesn’t have anything to do with me.  He doesn’t owe ME an apology.

The press is frothing at the mouth over his “press conference” and how they are entitled to answers.  Entitled?  Why?  Does Tiger Woods’ sex life have anything to do with them?  Did it effect his performance on the golf course?  If it did, I’d say it probably effected it for the better so what the hell are they complaining about?

Tiger used the word “entitled” in his speech as well.  And I guess maybe the fact that I have always viewed “entitled” rich people in a negative light might be why I wasn’t remotely surprised when the women started running to the press screaming of their loving affairs with Tiger.  It’s probably a sad commentary on society, or maybe on me, that I fully expect rich, powerful people to be unfaithful to their families.  I’m not surprised when it’s the President, a famous actor or a famous athlete.  The simple fact is, these men and women have access to just about anybody and anything they want.  Do I justify them taking it, especially when they have a family waiting for them at home?  Hell no, but I get it.  We’re all tempted by something.

I remember how utterly shocked my mother was when the Tiger news started leaking, because she thought he was better than that, he was a good person.  She felt like the person she knew wasn’t real anymore.  But none of us know Tiger.  He’s a private person (or was) and all we got to see was a carefully maintained image.  Had we looked, though, I don’t think we would really have been remotely shocked when allegations came out.

Look at who Tiger’s best friends are:  Michael Jordan (who had extramarital affairs and even a grown son out of wedlock), Charles Barkley (uh hello, drunk driving to get a blow job ring a bell), Warren Sapp (also rumored cheater and recently arrested on domestic violence charges)…um, generally you are who you hang out with.  Is it any surprise that Tiger wasn’t the perfect family guy that we all decided he was?

I laughed when I heard that Golf Digest was boycotting Tiger’s speech today because they weren’t going to get to ask him any questions.  What does Golf Digest need to know other than when he’ll return?  Do they want photos of Woods’ getting it on with the women?  Do they expect him to give a timeline of when he started cheating?  What does it have to do with them?  What does it have to do with any of us?

Does Tiger owe the children who looked up to him an apology? Maybe…but that conversation is more important for a parent to have with a child than for a child to listen to on a television.  And frankly I wouldn’t want my kid thinking or hearing about such things but to each their own.

Does he owe an apology to the people who work for him?  Only for the distractions it has provided, the questions they’ve had to answer and/or avoid.  The same goes for his fellow golfers; he can apologize to them for them having to answer questions about him but many of them owe their publicity to him in the first place.  Sorry, but it’s true.  Tiger is the PGA to much of the world.  And I wouldn’t be so quick to cast stones in his direction if I were a fellow golfer, because I bet cash money that Tiger is not alone in the whole cheating business.

Does he owe you and me an apology?  No.  He owes us nothing.  If he owes us anything, it’s working hard to get back on the course where he belongs.  Golf is not the same without him and I know I don’t pay any attention when Tiger’s not playing.  I’d love to see him back on Augusta in contention but it’ll happen when it happens.

Tiger owes his wife and his wife’s family and his children and mother an apology.  He owes them answers and explanations.  He owes them heartfelt words.  Not us.  I’ve heard criticism already that Tiger was robotic…what’s new with that?  He pretty much always has been and he’s up there in front of the world exposing his sins…should he have cried?  Would you want to cry on the world stage?  I sure as hell wouldn’t.  Of course he read his speech word for word, the dumbest thing possible would be to get up there without everything written down.  And he didn’t even have to do that, no matter what the media would have us believe.

I’m not going to speak on what Tiger’s wife should do, if she should forgive him or not.  That’s up to her.  I doubt I could in her situation but I don’t have two little kids to think about either.  This situation is going to haunt Tiger for the rest of his life, no matter if he actually stood up and gave us a breakdown of every single act he committed.  That and his home strife is punishment enough for me.

Maybe I’m betraying my gender by not being more worked up about it but really it doesn’t matter to me.  These women knew he was married going into it and they were idiots if they thought they meant anymore than sexual gratification to him.  Should that offend me?  They knew what they were doing.  Elin is the only wronged party in that whole mess as far as I’m concerned.

I wish Elin and Tiger the best as they struggle to deal with the scrutiny that she in particular does not deserve.  I’m not going to look and/or listen to any more of it.  I’m not addressing it again.  One and done.  I’m just going to wait patiently to see that red Nike shirt again on Sundays.  That’s the only thing I need from Tiger Woods.

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Sports Shorts

I’ve been negligent in my sports commentary since football season ended.  I know it, I just haven’t been into sports at all now that football has gone and even things I love, like the draft, failed to stir me out of my sports funk.  This is in large part due to hating everything that my former team, Tampa Bay, has done this off season; from releasing Derrick Brooks and Warrick Dunn to drafting a project QB in the first round to spending a fortune on a tight end with an attitude problem.  Hated every single part of it and still not hyped about the upcoming season.  Derrick has yet to sign anywhere and I’m waiting patiently to see if he will sign for someone I can root for.  I’ll continue to root for the Pats, of course, but right now the Bucs are dead to me and they’re going to have to work pretty hard to get back my love.

Despite my lack of interest, I haven’t turned a blind eye to sports these past few months.  I still watch PTI every day and Sportscenter more than is healthy.  I still check my Cardinals box scores feverishly even though their early fast start has come to a screeching halt.  I could tell you who the teams in the NBA playoffs are, even though I have never cared for basketball.  So I am on top of things, I’m just not enamored of them like usual.

That’s not to say that there aren’t some things going on that I don’t care deeply about.  I start with the latest, the release of Michael Vick from prison and the resulting “where will he land?” conversations.  I know Michael Vick served his time and I know there are players in the NFL and other sports who probably have done worse than Vick and not paid as dearly as he did for his crimes.  I get that.  Hey, if it was up to me the Leonard Little’s of the world would not be gracing the football field.  The fact that he is doesn’t change the fact that Michael Vick sickens me and I will never root for any team that takes him (and yes, I have heard the speculation that the Pats could go there…they better not).  If you’ve read any of my TV blogs you know that I can deal with all the horrors and tortures that people do to one another but anytime they kill an animal, I can’t stand it.  And I realize that is probably silly and we’re talking fiction vs. real life, but the truth of the matter is, I will never forget what Vick did and I will never forgive what Vick did.  If he wants to partner with the Humane Society and speak to the ills of dog fighting, that’s great.  I’m all for it.  But does he believe it, or is he doing it simply because he needs some good PR?  Cause I have to figure he doesn’t value an animal’s life anymore now than he did prior to prison.  He just values a paycheck and his livelihood.  If he can perhaps influence some of the other morons of the world that consider torturing animals a form of entertainment, good.  It doesn’t mean I have to support him though.  It doesn’t mean I have to cheer for him.  As far as I’m concerned he’s a thug and a murderer.  Scum.  He was a thug before he got money and he was a thug after he got money.  Will he be a less of a thug after prison?  I don’t know.  A part of me is glad a man like Tony Dungy is reaching out to him, another part of me doesn’t want Tony soiled by his presence.

I, of course, have no say as to what Roger Goodell does when it comes to reinstating Mike Vick.  It’ll happen, be it with or without a suspension for lying.  But I do have the right to say that I’m not going to root for any team that takes him.  I won’t watch a game in which he plays.  I find it interesting that everybody seems to think he’ll just waltz onto a team and be able to play anyway.  He hasn’t been on a football field in 2 years.  I doubt prison life was great for his speed and agility.  So here’s hoping it’ll be a nonissue and he won’t be able to cut it anymore.  Let him get a real job like the rest of the world and learn what it’s like to work for a living.  Let him stay the hell away from any four legged creature.  Let him prove that he can be a decent person before rolling out the red carpet, okay?

The other big football news, as always and forever, is the never ending saga of Brett Favre.  I didn’t write a post celebrating his “retirement” because I knew…I knew that he’d pull this bullshit again and we’d be stuck with months of “Will he?” or “Won’t he?”  Now he’s courting the Vikings and vice versa and everyday we’re getting breathless reports on whether or not he’s getting shoulder surgery.  I don’t give a damn.  I can’t even make myself have rage over it because it was so expected that he’d pull this again.  He just can’t stand not having his name out there.  Next year we’ll be talking about this again.  I won’t ever believe he’s done.

Jon Gruden is joining the MNF booth and I’m pretty delighted.  I love Tony Kornheiser as much as the next gal but he didn’t add anything to games and often took away by interjecting something pointless.  Gruden is always a good quote and I hear that he did well on the NFL draft coverage on the NFL Network (which of course I would not know due to not having the NFL Network, thanks Brighthouse and NFL!) so I’m looking forward to hearing what my former coach has to say.  I think he’ll go well with Jaws and Tirico.

I’m not freaking out about Tiger Woods yet but I am getting slightly worried about his ability to close out wins.  I want Tiger to excel, he’s the only reason I remotely pay attention to golf.  He needs to contend.  While I’m talking golf, thoughts are with Phil and Amy Mickelson as she fights breast cancer.  There are few words scarier than “cancer” and having dealt with it in my family, it’s something that I wouldn’t wish upon anybody.  They seem like great people and I am sending some prayers their way.

I’m not paying much attention to baseball but I do know my Cards have fallen apart with injuries to Ludwick and Ankiel, not to mention having a cobbled together pitching staff.  Carpenter is back tonight and I wish him well but I have no faith that he won’t be injured again in a couple weeks.

Well those are the main sports things I felt like discussing.  Plenty of other stuff has gone on but it’s all flown out of my head at the moment.  I will try not to wait so long for my next sports post, not that they get read like my TV ones. hehe  Back at ya later!

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Just Call Me The Commish

Watch out, Finchem, I'm gunning for your job!

While watching my daily dose of PTI (Pardon The Interruption for the non-ESPN watchers) last week I was astounded when Wilbon & Kornheiser welcomed their guest for 5 good minutes.  He was introduced as Timothy Finchem, the commissioner of the PGA.  Did you know that the PGA had a commissioner?  Have you ever heard that name before?  I honestly had no clue there was a Commissioner of Golf, or why they’d even need one.  I guess to manage the money but seems an accountant could do that well enough.  It fascinated me and I got to thinking, could there be any better job than PGA Commissioner?  I’m sure the guy makes great bank and has few headaches, right?  That got me to comparing the various sports commissioners and weighing which job was better.  Hence this blog.  I’m not going to include the BCS Commissioner because being the commissioner of a league that lets computers decide its champion is a thing of shame, not to be glorified in a blog by me.

So, from worst to first:

MLB Commissioner:  Do you think Bud Selig is having any fun these days?  His biggest star admits to doing steroids, Congress continues to cast a baleful glare in his direction, two of his former biggest stars are getting ready to go on trial for steroids and lying to Congress, the All Star game decides home field advantage in the World Series…that’s a whole laundry list of problems.  And the fact that Selig turned a blind eye to the problems in baseball coupled with his kowtowing to the player’s union for years and years makes this job rather unappealing to me.   Not to mention just waiting for the hammer to drop and other names to come out.  I get an ulcer just thinking about it.  Nope, I wouldn’t want to be Bud.

NHL Commissioner:  I had a hard time placing this one.  On the one hand, hardly anybody watches hockey so you kind of get to exist in a vacuum.  Nobody really knows if you suck, because nobody really cares.  But that has to affect profitability, right?  The fact is they have been unable to find a star with drawing power.  Wayne Gretzky left and I don’t think the sport has been the same.  I’ve heard some not so pleasant things about Gary Bettman’s reign as commish, but I also heard that he improved the game somewhat with that OT shoot-out business.  The simple fact is, I couldn’t pick him out of a lineup, but at least I know his name.  He lands at #4 simply because his sport is pretty irrelevant.  Oh, and it’s too long for my taste, they crown a champ and it feels like they’re back to playing a month later.  Minus points for that.

NFL Commissioner:  Ahh Roger Goodell time!  The NFL is the #1 sport in America, so the job would appear to be the best of all of them when it comes to that factor.  Profits rise every year (unless you’re Detroit) and the league enjoys a lack of public scrutiny when it comes to things like steroids and drug testing.  This is because they have had stringent tests for years, although one suspects that the players are smarter than the tests.  Nobody cares like they do in baseball though, we just wanna win!  The reason this job is not the most appealing is because of the outside elements you have to deal with as commish.  The Pacman Jones’ of the world, if you will.  With each team having 53 players, it only takes one per team to create a lot of strife.  Dealing with the Mike Vicks and Plaxico Burress’ of the league would not be fun.  Nearly weekly someone is getting in trouble for something, be it drugs or DUI or shooting yourself in the thigh.  Points deducted for the troublemakers and the sheer number of people you’re dealing with and NFL Commish falls to the 3 spot.

NBA Commissioner:  I don’t watch the NBA, but I know who David Stern is and I could pick him out of a lineup.  I could pick him out because he scares me.  I would finger some other guy for the crime and hope that Stern would reward me in some way.  Basketball players are apt to fall into the same kind of trouble as football players are, pot smoking seeming to be the chief no-no they get nailed with.  But there are far fewer players to deal with here, so there’s less to worry about.  Hell, the #1 or #2 star in the league was charged with rape years ago and that affected nothing.  Points are deducted here because the NBA remains only the #3 sport of the big 4, with no signs of ever moving up the list.  Despite having some stars with name power, Lebron and Kobe, they’re still not MJ or Magic or Bird.  Your random person doesn’t care.  So Stern only gets #2.  I hope he refrains from hurting me!

PGA Commissioner:  Yep, that’s right, the guy I’ve never heard of, Tim Finchem, gets the top spot.  Think about it, who’s the league troublemaker?  John Daly right?  And everyone STILL loves the guy.  Nobody wants him punished, they want to sit down and have a beer with him.  Sure, you have Sergio take the occasional spit into a cup, but if that’s your biggest problem then you’re sitting on gold.  Your biggest concern is to make sure Tiger Woods is happy, right?  He was on PTI to celebrate Tiger’s return and what it means to the PGA.  Your #1 superstar is never going to get arrested for beating a woman or doing drugs.  He’s the ultimate family man and world ambassador.  Stern and Goodell would laugh at Finchem if he ever called them to complain about any of Daly’s silly acts.  Timmy gets to sit back and count his coins and maybe play a round or two of golf.  Tough life.

So there you have it.  There’s no better commissioner’s job than that of the Tim Finchem’s.  I’m aware that I have no idea what kind of administrative coordination these guys do, I’m sure it’s involved and whatnot but I still figure the PGA dude has it the best.  So, I’d like to throw my hat in the ring.  I’m running for PGA Commish.  Watch out Finchem!

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