Note: This was written Saturday 10th April
It has been interesting experiencing the national/International narrative surrounding Tiger Woods’ return to golf this week. Supposed experts of golf have been shocked that Tiger hasn’t missed a beat, that the pressure of the last 5 months hasn’t affected Tiger’s game.
Well, duh.
I have never lost sight of the fact that Tiger Woods is in all probability the best golfer of all time. Not Jack – but Tiger. Furthermore, for Tiger to be the best at a sport which not too long ago would not let people who looked like him even enter a golf course is staggering.
People should not lose sight of the fact that whether you like it or not, whether you like him or not, when you are watching Tiger play, you are watching a genius. The athlete of our generation. The Ali of our time. The Babe Ruth of the greens.
He is all of the above, but most important, it should be clear that Tiger Woods is not a role model. He is just a brilliant golf player. Tiger Woods should not be another excuse for the reason why our children (to be more precise, black children) fail in school. Tiger Woods is just a golf player. For someone to say that [sic] “Tiger failed us all, Tiger failed golf, Tiger failed as a role model”, is disingenuous and cowardly. The only thing Tiger failed is his wife and family. Full stop.
If “Tiger failed us all”, then we failed ourselves. We shouldn’t be looking to a golf player for moral guidance in the first place.
Tiger didn’t fail golf, Tiger has made millions for golf. Golf would still be a boring, yawn inducing game, fat cat, whites only game, if it wasn’t for Tiger. Go to Africa, Asia and Eastern Europe and ask them to name you a golfer who isn’t named Tiger Woods.
As for Tiger failing as a role model, again, my mother is my role model. My father (god rest his soul), was a role model. Tiger Woods? That’s a golfer.
We need to stop celebrating the celebrity and just accept them for what they are – talented, flawed human beings, nothing more, nothing less.
The copyrighted cartoon by Paul Zanetti, Australia, is licensed to run on TMV. Unauthorized reproduction prohibited. All rights reserved.
Just a normal everyday bloke writing about films.