Tiger's Indefinite Leave Clippings, Obama Chimes-In Edition
/The Hill's Jordan Fabian reports that President Barack Obama talks to People about Tiger Woods.
The president told People magazine in an interview that will hit newsstands Friday that he "absolutely" believes that Woods can rehabilitate his broken personal life after it was revealed he has had multiple extramarital affairs.
"I'm a strong believer that anybody can look within themselves, find their flaws and fix them," he said. "I'm sure he feels terrible about what happened, and I suspect that he will try to put his life back together again."
Speaking of that, Tiger's now been "seen" in South Africa's Montrose Clinic according to The Sun.
Jaime Diaz offered this in a Golf World column about PGA Tour life without Tiger last week:
It's a given that none of the players who contended over the Plantation course are as gifted or thrilling to watch as Woods. But it's precisely because such players have more baggage and must be closer to their best to win that makes their struggle -- when chronicled with the hole-by-hole scrutiny with which we have become accustomed to watching Woods -- arguably more compelling. With what promises to be a rotating ensemble at the top of the game rather than a singular superstar, tournament golf has once again become more vividly varied week to week, with each tournament more likely to produce fresh drama.
The Denver Post's Felisa Cardona reports that Jason Kay, who just a few days ago was claiming to have helped the "Unfaithful" Gatorade pop artist, turned out to be the culprit behind the bottles. He was arrested by FDA agents and charged with "introducing a misbranded product into interstate commerce, the altering of food labels while the product is for sale and intent to cause serious injury to the business by tainting a consumer product."
The charges together carry a maximum 5-year prison term and $450,000 in fines.
According to an FDA affidavit, Kay sent an e-mail to PepsiCo, the parent company of Gatorade and offered to do the labeling scheme as a marketing campaign for the company.
"It is good for Gatorade and it is good for art," the e-mail reportedly said.
PepsiCo contacted the FDA and complained that 10 one-quart bottles of Tropical-Mango flavored Gatorade had the labels affixed and were removed from the shelves at King Soopers and Safeway stores in Erie, Boulder, Longmont, and Broomfield.
On Monday, Daniel Burke, an FDA agent contacted Kay and he admitted he was changing the labels and considered it "pop art."
"He said he felt the issue of Tiger Woods' alleged infidelity to his wife, Elin, is Tiger Woods' personal business and added that this act would get people talking about why Gatorade dropped their Tiger Woods ad campaign," Burke wrote in his affidavit. "He said he felt the company should be happy because he was providing them with positive press."
Kotaku reports that EA Sports is asking users about Tiger:
1) EA SPORTS made a Tiger Woods video game. Has the controversy made your impressions of EA SPORTS more or less favorable, or has it had no impact?
And
2) Has the controversy made you more or less likely to buy a Tiger Woods related video game in the future?
Stephanie Wei wonders if this is signaling a possible end to Tiger's name on the game notes this about the marketing of the next version:
After that very public PR campaign, it will be interesting to see how EA Sports tackles the marketing of Tiger Woods Online. I guess the game’s announcers, Scott Van Pelt and Kelly Tilghman, can stage a match in NYC. Or Phil Mickelson can stand in for Tiger. Or something like that.
Furman Bisher has taken down his report on the Tiger chain email.
In one of the more hilarious tabloid reports, US Weekly paints a comical picture of Tiger-the-squatter, shacking up at Mark O'Meara's empty villa instead of his own second house at Isleworth:
"When she kicked him out, he couldn't exactly go to a hotel, so he ran over to [pro golfer] Mark O'Meara's empty villa and stayed there," says a resident of Woods' luxe Isleworth, Florida, gated community.
Adds the source, who viewed the home after Woods left: "The house was gutted except for an air mattress, some pillows, a TV, snacks and Bud Light in the fridge, and a golf glove on the floor."
Must have been a medium large cadet? Oh yeah he was there!
And while we're doing tabloid's gone desperate for Tiger news, The National Enquirer is claiming that Michael Jordan is trying to offer his shoulder for Elin to cry on:
The King of Swing's picture-perfect family life has imploded since The ENQUIRER ripped the lid off his affair with New York party girl Rachel Uchitel, unleashing a tidal wave of other Tiger mistresses stepping forward.
And with the Woods-Nordegren marriage shattered, Jordan got word to 30-year-old Elin though friends that he's there if she needs him, insiders say.
While Jordan's reps deny the story, an insider divulged, "Right after Tiger crashed his car, Michael reached out to Elin, offering her a shoulder to cry on."