This guy talked the fool, telling the world his kid would do this and that. He's the kind of guy who you would normally dismiss as a lunatic. Except that everything he said came true.
Tiger Woods is easily the most intriguing athlete in the world for me. You wonder where the drive comes from, where the emotional and intellectual strength comes from. And you have to know that he is the way he is in large part from his influences. Michael Jordan had the strong father figure. Tiger had Earl. Even Kobe had Jellybean. Mothers are important to men, no question. But, it's also important for a man to have a strong father figure.
Earl on Tiger:
Being a sentimental man, Earl got to worrying a few years ago that Tiger's life of golf and celebrity and "his surgeon's degree of concentration" might be costing him some human dimension. "The phone rang once," Earl said, "and it was Tiger on his cell. 'Where the hell are you?' I said. 'Australia,' he said. 'What the hell for?' 'I'm scuba diving,' he said. I told him, 'Don't you know there are Great Whites down there?' He said, 'I won't bother them if they don't bother me.' He thought nothing of it.
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"When I hung up, though, I felt a little sad. 'Does Tiger have to go all the way to Australia to get out from behind that gate at Isleworth and away from all those damn $20 million houses?' But then I got to thinking of the friends he has always had, the few really good friends, the ones he has stayed loyal to because they have always treated him the same. You know, Tiger's the biggest joke prankster I've ever known. He'll rag on you forever. He's as human as you can be. He's OK, I thought. I stopped worrying.
"And now he has a wife, a great wife. It's hard for a caveman to go out on a hunt, bring the damn food into the cave, light the friggin' fire, do every other damn thing, and then sit there and eat alone. Now, Tiger is really at peace. Which means, now, he's really dangerous."
Not having kids of my own, I would think that one of the great joys of fatherhood must be when you see your son or daughter as an adult having made it in the world (granted few make it like Tiger has). But, seeing an adult that was once your child on their own, living life, that's got to be the biggest joy.Â
I am sorry to hear about his death. Earl is in a good place now. I know Earl got criticized for pushing his son hard as a golfer, but as far as I am concerned, it's a great thing and obviously Tiger enjoyed being around his dad. I am glad Earl got to see his dream come through which is seeing his son achieve at his craft.
My condoleneces and prayer to Tiger, Earl's wife, and the rest of the family.
In a way, it's a sad day in golf.
Star-Ledger's Kevin Manahan wrote a great story about the relationshp of Tiger and his dad, Earl Woods. It's a beautiful read. You know a lot of people in the media always ripped on Tiger's dad for being a micromanager of Tiger. I admit I was a critic myself. I feel bad for ripping him. i come to realize Tiger's dad did what most dads would do which is seeing their kid succeed and being a huge part of life. Earl did that. You can also tell how good Tiger did in taking care of his dad. When I read the story, I thought of my flashbacks of me and my dad when I was a youngester. The morale of this lesson is appreciate your dad and take good care of them as you became an adult.
I know I am doing that.
Earl Woods did a lot of good things for people.
http://www.nj.com/sports/ledger/index.ssf?/base/sports-0/1146721718263090.xml&coll=1
You should have some kids, it changes your focus. I have 3 and to grandkids, it's it makes your world complete.
Hopefully, the kids will come. Until then, I'll yammer on about the Twins, Wolves, etc.