Tiger's Crash: Bigger Every Day
Nope, we've definitely left behind the "it's just a minor one-car accident'' phase of the Tiger Woods story.
Kind of nostalgic, isn't it, to look back at the weekend after Thanksgiving and see that an incredible number of people - at least an incredible number with internet access - couldn't imagine why on earth everyone was nitpicking to death that little late-night fender-bender in Florida. It was 2:30 in the morning, it was right on Tiger's street, the windows of his truck were shattered, his wife was wielding a golf club, Tiger was bleeding, neighbors were calling 911 ... nothing to see here, folks, everybody disperse. Private family matter.
Fast forward to today. Tiger Woods has quit golf, indefinitely. His sponsors are treating him like he has cooties. (Most of them are - but not Nike, which has to be aware of roughly how many "Just Do It'' jokes have been passed around since that weekend.) Two women have gone on the Today Show - not TMZ, not Access Hollywood, we're talking about the Today Show - to describe their versions of their interactions with Woods. The top executives at each network with the rights to a golf major are giving themselves CPR every five minutes. There is talk of nude photos and centerfold spreads and hush money and re-negotiated pre-nups.
And people all over the country, probably the world, will not ... stop ... talking about it. Even when they're telling everybody within earshot that they wish everybody would stop talking about it. Sometimes entire conversations, debates, arguments, likely fistfights, start with somebody saying they're sick of all the talk about Tiger Woods. Journalists have begun reports, columns, features and essays explaining why their chosen topic is more important than what's going on with Tiger Woods, immediately rendering their arguments faulty and their stories irrelevant, by definition. (Note: Tiger Woods' name, second paragraph; topic of commentary, a U.S. Senator, fourth paragraph.)
The point of all of this: Tiger Woods is a pretty big deal. And the fact that he is such a big deal is, in itself, a pretty big deal.
