Tiger off the Green, on the Prowl

12/22/2009

By Dan Canfield, Tyler Cavanaugh and Jimmy Fazio
Staff Writers

Photo Courtesy of Us Weekly

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Tiger Woods' life, career and marriage appear to be the collateral damage of his car crash outside of his home on Nov. 27. One of the world’s richest athletes has been facing scrutiny after apologizing for committing past “transgressions” against his family and wife Elin Nordegren.

“I have let my family down and I regret those transgressions with all my heart,” Woods wrote on his website, “I have not been true to my values and the behavior my family deserves.”

On Dec. 11 he announced that he was taking an “indefinite break from professional golf.”

The count is now up to 14 different women allegedly linked to Woods. The first was Jamie Grubbs a cocktail waitress in the Los Angeles area who appeared in the VH1 reality TV show “Tool Academy.”

As the affairs piled on, sponsors began questioning what to do. Accenture has recently dropped Woods as part of its advertisement campaigns.

Some students at Jamesville-DeWitt High School were not surprised by Woods’ transgressions.

Ali Akyuz, a sophomore at J-DHS, believes Woods to be one of the richest and most recognizable athletes in the world. Women were bound to throw themselves at him if given a chance for a piece of the pie, he says.

Others, however, were more surprised by the news.

Dan LaClair, a sophomore and member of the varsity golf team, says, “I was shocked and disappointed and I knew right away he would sink.” He doesn’t believe the situation will resolve quickly and that it will linger for the rest of Woods' career. According to LaClair, it was necessary for Woods to speak publicly because with celebrities the truth always comes out.

Sophomore Terrance Smith had a different take on the situation. He thought it was not that serious and didn’t have to be so hyped up in the news. He did concede, however, that the scandal will change the way people look at Woods.

“It is sad to see someone I look up to be a failure,” said Luke Sala, a sophomore. “People are always remembered for the one bad thing they did.” But, says Sala, this only confirms that no one is perfect.