This week’s events and ensuing media circus surrounding Tiger Woods have hurt me greatly.  As one of Tiger’s biggest fans, I have been able to revel in his outstanding successes during the past 13 years.  Unfortunately, I now have to suffer through his failures.  In the statement released on his website, Tiger all but confirms what many have speculated.

All too often, the public pretends that athletes and celebrities are superhuman, that they don’t suffer from the same shortfalls and misgivings that the rest of us do.  I am certainly guilty of feeling this way at times.  I have put many athletes on a pedestal of higher standing before, only to be disappointed when they fail.  What makes this particularly hard to deal with, however, is that Tiger is my guy.  He was invincible to me.  As a 9 year old kid, he became my idol.  I vividly remember my dad calling me into the family room and saying “Watch this.  This kid is special” as Tiger went on to win the 1997 Masters.  That makes it very hard for me to comprehend this whole thing.

Let me be clear: I believe straying from marriage is one of the worst transgressions a man can commit.  Tiger Woods screwed up in a huge, huge way.  There’s no denying that.  However, he is only human, just like you and me.  He admitted that he has made his mistakes and regrets them greatly.  I can’t help but to feel a tinge of sorrow for him, knowing that he will most likely never be able to completely escape this week for the rest of his life.  That’s the saddest part of all of this.  Tiger has done a lot of great things.  On top of being a legendary athlete, he has donated millions of dollars, advanced the cause of minorities in areas that were previously untouched, and most importantly, inspired millions of people.

As one of Tiger’s biggest fans, I fear that this incident will overshadow all of the great things he has done and all of the great things he has yet to do, and that hurts more than I will ever be able to articulate.