„Was just supposed to be fun“
To tease his rival Justin Thomas, Tiger Woods put a tampon in the 29-year-old’s hand at the Genesis Invitational. The outcry on the web is so great that Woods publicly apologizes for his behavior.
A misguided joke involving a tampon has forced golf superstar Tiger Woods to issue a public apology. „It was just supposed to be a joke, obviously it didn’t go down that way,“ the 47-year-old said of the prank he played on rival Justin Thomas. At the tournament in Pacific Palisades, California, Woods had pushed a tampon into Thomas‘ hand during their round of play together. When the 29-year-old noticed what he was holding, he promptly dropped the hygiene product. Laughing, Woods then put his arm around his colleague.
With the action, he had apparently wanted to trie Thomas for the fact that he had previously managed a longer tee shot despite his age and his injury history. The scene caused a stir on social networks and drew a lot of criticism for Woods. The latter said he had not meant to offend anyone. „It was just fun among friends,“ the 47-year-old affirmed. Even if the pictures should have seemed otherwise, he said, it was just one of many pranks they would play.
The start at the Genesis Invitational will be Woods‘ first appearance at a tournament since last summer. In February 2021, Woods broke his right leg multiple times in a serious car accident, and since then the longtime world number one golfer has only competed in a few select tournaments. After a strong opening round, in which Woods needed 69 strokes for the par-71 course in California, things went much worse for him on the second day. With 74 strokes, he found himself in the back of the field and had to fear for the cut and participation in the further rounds.