Apparently adultery is more forgivable than it used to be.
Tiger Woods made his return to the golf course this weekend at The Masters in Augusta, Ga., after a five-month hiatus, and America, just like it has throughout the entire saga, couldn’t look away. ESPN had about 5 million viewers for its Masters coverage, 47 percent higher than it did for last year’s first-round coverage.
Some tuned in to see what would happen in the next chapter of Woods’ story; the same voyeuristic attitude has prevailed since Woods’ wife, Elin, chased him out of the house wielding a 9-iron on Thanksgiving night. But others tuned in to cheer him on in his return. And should we really be surprised that Woods is working his way back onto the public’s good side? He is hardly the first athlete to have his reputation tarnished and then returns to the top of his profession. Kobe Bryant was charged with rape in 2003 and since then has been to three NBA Finals. And he has had the top-selling jersey in the NBA the last two years.
And of course, as soon as the fans are back in Woods’ corner, advertisers are returning as well. Advertisers had been avoiding Woods like he had the plague. He doesn’t, but a few STDs may not be out of the realm of possibility. But last week Nike unveiled a new commercial featuring Woods, with a voice-over by his deceased father (creepy?).
Tiger is back, he finished fourth at The Masters, and everything will be soon be back to normal. And why would we expect anything different? This is America, and stories like this in the lives of athletes and celebrities are all too common.
