Tiger avoids media but fields questions from fans
Source: Agencies |
May 2, 2012, Wednesday
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Print Edition
Print Edition
THE only questions Tiger Woods fielded before his next tournament came from his fans.
Instead of a news conference before this week's Wells Fargo Championship, Woods answered 19 questions on Monday in a 15-minute video posted on his website. The questions were submitted through Facebook and Twitter.
The timing of the decision was peculiar. Woods is coming off his worst performance ever at the Masters, a tie for 40th in which he finished 15 shots behind and was roundly criticized for kicking his 9-iron in disgust after a poor tee shot on the par-3 16th hole in the second round.
Woods typically speaks to the media before every tournament. This time, he will not speak to reporters until his first round on Thursday at Quail Hollow.
His agent Mark Steinberg told The Charlotte Observer that Woods' trading the traditional media for social media was not in response to the criticism he received at the Masters.
"The media will continue to have access to him," Steinberg said. "This isn't anything more than a couple of times a year to interact with the fans. They deserve that. This isn't intended to make a statement. This is intended to be more inclusive. This isn't a statement whatsoever. Some in the media might interpret it that way, but that's not the intent."
Among the questions he took for the video: Do you have a good chance of winning?; Have you ever made an albatross?; What was the difference between Bay Hill (where he won) and the Masters?"
Performance
Fans were told that he would answer questions about his next two tournaments - Quail Hollow and The Players Championship - although Woods took the question about how his performance changed from Bay Hill and Augusta. Another question was what he had been working on with swing coach Sean Foley since the Masters.
"At the Masters, I was kind of struggling with my ball-striking a little bit," he said. "Sean and I fixed it. It had to do with posture. My setup wasn't quite right, as well as my takeaway. I just needed to do hundreds of reps. I'm getting dialed in."
Woods, the biggest star in golf with 72 tour wins and 14 majors, has operated under a different set of rules than most other players. In a deal made years ago with the PGA Tour, he only comes to the media center for his pre-tournament news conference when he is the defending champion or is at a tournament for the first time or one he has not played in a long time. Woods always goes to the media center before tournaments at the majors.
Instead of a news conference before this week's Wells Fargo Championship, Woods answered 19 questions on Monday in a 15-minute video posted on his website. The questions were submitted through Facebook and Twitter.
The timing of the decision was peculiar. Woods is coming off his worst performance ever at the Masters, a tie for 40th in which he finished 15 shots behind and was roundly criticized for kicking his 9-iron in disgust after a poor tee shot on the par-3 16th hole in the second round.
Woods typically speaks to the media before every tournament. This time, he will not speak to reporters until his first round on Thursday at Quail Hollow.
His agent Mark Steinberg told The Charlotte Observer that Woods' trading the traditional media for social media was not in response to the criticism he received at the Masters.
"The media will continue to have access to him," Steinberg said. "This isn't anything more than a couple of times a year to interact with the fans. They deserve that. This isn't intended to make a statement. This is intended to be more inclusive. This isn't a statement whatsoever. Some in the media might interpret it that way, but that's not the intent."
Among the questions he took for the video: Do you have a good chance of winning?; Have you ever made an albatross?; What was the difference between Bay Hill (where he won) and the Masters?"
Performance
Fans were told that he would answer questions about his next two tournaments - Quail Hollow and The Players Championship - although Woods took the question about how his performance changed from Bay Hill and Augusta. Another question was what he had been working on with swing coach Sean Foley since the Masters.
"At the Masters, I was kind of struggling with my ball-striking a little bit," he said. "Sean and I fixed it. It had to do with posture. My setup wasn't quite right, as well as my takeaway. I just needed to do hundreds of reps. I'm getting dialed in."
Woods, the biggest star in golf with 72 tour wins and 14 majors, has operated under a different set of rules than most other players. In a deal made years ago with the PGA Tour, he only comes to the media center for his pre-tournament news conference when he is the defending champion or is at a tournament for the first time or one he has not played in a long time. Woods always goes to the media center before tournaments at the majors.
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