George,
I guess I don't understand why you feel that Tiger needs to be defended.. he maybe the greatest golfer of all time, but that doesn't mean he's even remotely a nice guy or a decent human being. You have no proof that he is. So your hero is tainted, get used to it, he has sacrificed everything to be the best.
You're correct that I have no proof that he is. I also don't see proof that he isn't. I see a lot of gossip type stuff.
Tiger is no hero of mine. My heroes are my parents and other decent people I know personally, as well as a small number of people I respect for other reasons. I just love watching his golf and think that most of the criticisms are rooted in other things and over the top. He's a golfer, and a pretty good one at that.
I think we all need to be defended when it comes to our privacy. Call me crazy that way. If Haney had written a book solely about his golf experiences with Tiger, I'd be fine with that. The sad thing is it sounds like that's what most of the book is. But I won't give him a pass for including a lot of stuff that is likely only in there to create a buzz and feed the gossip machine (or likely rationalize away the lousy job he did while with Tiger, but that's an argument for another day).
George,
Did you think Monty was a jerk, with his sullen on-course demeanour and his rudeness in interviews when he had played badly? I did and I apply the same standard to Tiger. If you don't think Monty was a jerk I'll understand better where you are coming from on Tiger.
On the contrary, in every interview I've seen with Monty he seems like a pretty funny, clever guy. He just seems like a sourpuss on the golf course. Does that make him a jerk? Not in my book, but feel free to apply your own standard.
As a side note, I have no problem at all with any person being rude in an interview when they've just had a tough time. We all have bad days, and I know if someone stuck a microphone in my face every time I was having a hard time, I'd likely have trouble maintaining my composure all the time as well. Most of us are fortunate not to have our worst moments caught on film; I feel sorry for those who have.
There's an old saying: If you're not gonna like the answer, don't ask the question. I'll never understand the need for everyone to know exactly what some athlete was thinking or feeling when he screwed up. How about a little common decency?
Someone, I believe David C, asked earlier if those criticising the book would have a problem with Tiger writing a tell-all book. I'll say this: if Tiger writes his autobiography and includes sections on his golf experiences with Butch, Hank, Steve Williams, whoever, I will be fine with that; if he writes it and includes petty comments about Butch's personal foibles or Steve's eccentricities or whatever, I will think he is indeed a classless jerk.
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Nice post, Tim Gavrich.