Burns: A tiger of similar stripes

Call me a cynic. Maybe I’ve been covering professional athletes too long. But there is not one shred of me that is surprised about Tiger Woods.

The voicemails, the cover stories, the photos, the sheer volume of women that are now being linked to the world’s number one golfer. I don’t care how perfect the polish is on his public persona. He’s got wealth, power and fame. Pro athletes at the bottom of that food chain are pursued by women. Do you really think the guy at the top won’t be?

(I will say this though….the voicemail did surprise me. Not that he called this LA cocktail waitress, but that he called her and said “Hey, its Tiger….my wife went through my phone and, uh, she may be calling you.” Next time Tiger, why don’t you just give out your social security number while you’re at it?)

But his wife, Elin? Now there’s the twist. That’s something new. She is what makes this story interesting.

We’ve all been focused on Tiger’s legacy. Tiger’s image. Tiger’s future. But what Elin Nordegren did was unheard of. She was furious.

Many pro athletes’ wives’ are naïve to what is going on. Many, I’m sure, choose to be naïve – they’re married to the lifestyle not the man. Nordegren is neither. She’s angry. And while I’m not advocating beating up your husband, there is part of me that really respects the fact that she flipped out. She was mad as hell and she was not going to take it anymore. Honestly, good for her.

I remember when the infidelities of President Bill Clinton came to light. My wife (code name The Decision-Maker) was more upset at the First Lady Hillary Clinton then she was at the President. How can she just sit there and do nothing, the Decision Maker would say out loud. How can she just let it be? Can you imagine if Hillary had gone after Bill with a golf club? The Decision-Maker would have voted for her, I can tell you that.

Follow @Tyler_Bassett