A Tiger’s Tale: Golf’s Scandalous Saga
Tiger Woods is one of the most successful athletes of all time. Having taken the world of golf by storm aged 21 by becoming both the youngest person and first Black man to win the 1997 U.S. Masters, he went on to enjoy a tremendously successful career, one to which very few others have ever even come close to emulating. Yet despite his immense sporting achievements, Woods’ legacy may well be overshadowed, at least in part, by the sordid controversies that have dogged him since 2009. His personal life fell apart in the most public fashion possible that year, and he’s since struggled to get things back on track. Let’s take a look at where it all went wrong.
A very public collapse
Woods’ very public meltdown was a shock for everyone watching it unfold in real time. Here was arguably the greatest golfer of all time, a literal billionaire, who had recently met with the then-President Barack Obama in the White House — and his life was spiraling out of control before the eyes of the world.
It all started in November 2009 when reports began to emerge in the press about an extramarital affair in which he was engaged. The papers claimed it was with a nightclub hostess named Rachel Uchitel.
Incriminating photos
Photographs had been snapped showing that Woods and Uchitel had once stayed in the same hotel in Australia at the same time. This was while Woods had been competing at the Australian Masters.
The golfer had reportedly been told in advance that the photos and the story were about to run, so he decided to speak to his wife, Elin Nordegren, about it. According to The Daily Beast, which cited “two sources who know Tiger’s wife,” Woods had tried to convince Nordegren that the story was fake. He said he’d only ever met Uchitel a couple of times at social gatherings.
The two women chat on the phone
Nordegren wasn’t convinced, as rumors online began to swirl about what was about to come out in the papers. Woods, clearly sensing how bad things were potentially about to get, reportedly arranged for Nordegren and Uchitel to chat to each other on the phone.
The women are said to have conversed for roughly 30 minutes, during which time Nordegren’s fears were somewhat assuaged. One of the Daily Beast sources says she ended the call under the belief that Uchitel and her husband weren’t having an affair.
The situation explodes
The following day, which had been Thanksgiving, the situation exploded. Nordegren came to learn some of the nitty-gritty details included in the report about Woods’ alleged affair with Uchitel, and she was furious. She and her husband fell into an argument.
Both Daily Beast sources claim the squabbling was ended by Woods, who took a sedative and went to bed. One of the two sources claimed Woods had been suffering with insomnia during this period, which he primarily treated with sedatives.