Woods needs help
The news that hogged sports headlines yesterday didn’t happen in competition. Neither was it about a marquee name in prime and underscoring unique skill sets. Rather, it involved Tiger Woods, absentee golfer recovering from yet another stint under the knife, and featured his arrest in Florida for driving under the influence. He was taken into custody at three in the morning following a traffic stop a short distance away from his restaurant in Harbourside Place, booked some four hours later, and released on his own recognizance after another three and a half hours.
Fittingly, Woods apologized, noting in a statement that “I understand the severity of what I did and take full responsibility for my actions.” Little else is known about the development outside of the Jupiter Police Department’s disclosure that he was held for “DUI- UNLAW BLD ALCH – DUI ALCOHOL OR DRUGS.” However, he contended that “alcohol was not involved. What happened was an unexpected reaction to prescribed medications. I didn’t realize the mix of medications had affected me so strongly.”
Nonetheless, Woods was clearly not in full control of his faculties while behind the wheel, a dangerous situation for which there is no justification. And, setting aside his inexcusable decision to put himself and others in harm’s way, it reflects the struggles he has been going through in his protracted quest to regain his fitness. Last April, he underwent fusion surgery, the fourth procedure to his back in three years, and, in the aftermath, he revealed that “the long-term prognosis is positive … My solid focus is rehab and doing what the doctors tell me.” And even as he spoke glowingly of “taking my kids to and from school” with the time in his hands, he disclosed that “I want to play professional golf again.”
The problem, of course, lies in the chasm that separates what Woods would like to do and what he can do. He remains the biggest name in golf, and his unprecedented wealth of accomplishments leads him to believe he can regain his ascendancy sooner or later. At the same time, he is an old 41, physically battered by the toll of his unflinching desire to win. That he has managed to make only three starts in the last two years speaks of his challenges.
For now, Woods is at least taking a step in the right direction. “I would like to apologize with all my heart to my family, friends, and the fans. I expect more from myself, too. I will do everything in my power to make sure this never happens again,” he said. In any case, he needs help, and how much of it he gets — and, more importantly, how receptive he is to it — figures to determine his
future, on the course and off.
Tiger Woods remains the biggest name in golf, and his unprecedented wealth of accomplishments leads him to believe he can regain his ascendancy sooner or later. At the same time, he is an old 41, physically battered by the toll of his unflinching desire to win. That he has managed to make only three starts in the last two years speaks of his challenges.