Tiger's apology (2)

Not apology, mea culpa

Yesterday, we watched – actually, all of us took part – in Tiger Woods’s counseling program.

Think about that.

If it’s true, it explains the absence of apology language in Tiger’s remarks. The event wasn’t about apologizing. After all, he made a profound apology in December last year.

It wasn't a press conference, either, which explains the absence of journalists.

Part of his counseling program, we believe Tiger had to admit his errors, confront them, accept them, and acknowledge the impact his behavior had on people who are important to him and who care about him. Except for his wife Elin, those people were in the room yesterday.

So why couldn’t he call his friends and associates individually, or invite them over to his home? A friend in alcohol recovery might call you and say the same things – which has happened to us. Yesterday, Stewart Cink, the PGA professional golfer, said that has also happened to him.

Sadly, a phone call doesn’t get the job done. Tiger is a celebrity as big as the planet. His confrontation and acceptance, inevitably, must be equal to his reality, which is not just enormous, but global.

Which explains the television cameras, the importance of major news coverage, and even the words Tiger used – and probably wrote himself.

All of which puts Tiger’s talk in a different perspective. Clearly, it needed to be as honest, sincere, and authentic as he could make it. It was about his life, his future – and literally, who he is.

In fact, when he said that Elin didn’t need an apology, but will be convinced by his behavior, he meant it.

And in his amazing talk, he included all of us in that statement.