Shhhh, don't tell anyone that Tiger Woods ignores sick relatives
As a journalist, I’m going to admit something that I probably shouldn’t:
There is a part of me, a big part of me, that will be rooting against Tiger Woods when The Masters starts Thursday.
In fact, there is a part of me that hopes Tiger Woods never wins another golf tournament.
He is not a good person, and I’m sorry, I simply cannot root for athletes who treat those around them like garbage.
One of the greatest sportswriters who ever lived, Rick Reilly, wrote a column the other day for ESPN.com in which he revealed that Tiger has not contacted his half-brother, Kevin, in years.
Kevin has multiple sclerosis.
Here’s the beginning of Reilly’s column:
“Kevin Woods will sit in his wheelchair a few feet from his television, watching his half-brother play the Masters. He has to. He can’t see otherwise.
“Can’t stand much lately, either. Can barely use his left arm at all. He can feel his hands and feet going a little more numb every day. Kevin was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis in 2009, and it’s not getting better.
“I’d say 60 to 70 percent worse now,” says Kevin’s brother, Earl Woods Jr. “He’s not going to be able to keep his house much longer.”
”All three men had the same father, Earl Woods, but Earl Jr. says they haven’t heard from Tiger since they buried Earl’s ashes in Kansas six years ago.
”I leave messages,” Earl Jr. says. “I leave updates on Kevin, but for whatever reason I don’t get a response. … Kevin loves Tiger. A call from Tiger would really pump Kevin up. When he doesn’t call, it just makes him feel worse.”
How could anybody possibly root for Tiger Woods after reading this?
The fact is, this guy is a fraud as a human being and always has been. He has treated the City of Orlando like garbage. He’s treated his family like garbage. He’s treated his former swing coach like garbage. He treated the fans like garbage. And he even treats his sick relatives like garbage.
The Rick Reilly column should be the last straw. In hindsight, I find it repugnant that so many golf fans, like those at The Arnie in Orlando two weeks ago when he broke his 30-month winless streak, raucously cheered for Tiger.
This quote from Earl Jr., as told to Reilly, sums it up best: “I’d like to [slap] Tiger, wake him up. I’d like to say, ‘Don’t come knocking on the door when you need a bone-marrow transplant.’ To see this is the response we get? Maybe when you see the world like he does, you don’t see what other are going through. But, seriously? You’ve got problems with your knee? That’s nothing compared to what Kevin is going through. Nothing.”
Thoughts?
Will you continue to root for Tiger despite the fact that he is not a good human being?
(NOTE TO READERS): On our Open Mike radio show Thursday morning we will tackle this topic, discuss the continued rumblings that Dwight Howard is demanding that Magic coach Stan Van Gundy be fired and debate the latest controversy involving whether Augusta National should allow a woman to become member. We will also have a Spring Football Extravaganza with interviews with FSU football coach Jimbo Fisher (7:05 a.m.), UCF football coach George O’Leary (7:45 a.m.) and Gators football coach Will Muschamp (8:05 a.m.). If you want to listen, tune into 740 AM in Orlando every weekday from 6 to 9 a.m. or click here if you want to listen live on-line. You can call into the radio show at 407 916-8255 or toll free 1-800-729-8255. And if you want to hit me up on Twitter and follow my clever, witty and insightful comments, click here
