Contrite Woods keeps return to competition on hold

PONTE VEDRA BEACH, Fla., (Reuters) – Superstar  golfer Tiger Woods set no date for his return to competition yesterday, keeping sponsors and fans in a waiting game as he  apologized to his family and fans for cheating on his wife and  said he was continuing to get treatment.

“I do plan to return to golf one day. I just don’t know  when that day will be. I don’t rule out that it will be this  year,” Woods said in his first public appearance since  revelations of repeated infidelity caused his spectacular fall  from grace late last year.

Woods, the world’s No. 1 golfer and most marketable figure  in sports, bowed out of the game in a bid to repair his  marriage. His wife, Elin, was notably absent from his tightly  -controlled appearance at the headquarters of the U.S. PGA Tour  in Ponte Vedra Beach, Florida. The event was carried live on  U.S. television and was widely watched.

Woods, a 14-time major champion whose image was squeaky  clean until the scandal over his private life erupted,  apologized repeatedly for what he called his “irresponsible and  selfish behavior.”

“I was unfaithful, I had affairs, I cheated. What I did was  not acceptable and I am the only person to blame,” Woods said.  “I brought this shame on myself.”

He said he had undergone 45 days of therapy and had “a long  way to go” in repairing his personal life, adding that he would  be returning to a treatment center, which he did not identify,  starting on Saturday.

Woods, who was wearing a blue blazer, a pressed blue shirt  and no tie, spoke in measured and solemn tones as he delivered  a prepared statement to the group of about 40 people in the  room. There had been speculation that the 34-year-old American,  whose dominance of the golf course put him in the pantheon of  all-time sporting greats since he turned professional in 1996,  might announce a date for his return to golf. His absence from  events at which he usually competes generally drives down  television ratings by 50 percent.

His comments appeared to suggest that he would miss the  first major tournament of the year, the U.S. Masters in  Augusta, Georgia, at the beginning of April. The Masters is the  blockbuster golf event for sponsors and worldwide television  audiences.
“BIG QUESTION MARK”

But PGA Tour Commissioner Tim Finchem, who praised Woods  for taking what he described as “a good step” toward his return  to public life, said there was no rush to get him back to  professional competition.

“We’re supportive of whenever he comes back, whether it’s  three weeks from now or three months from now,” Finchem said.  “That’s less important than when he comes back. He’s prepared  to play to resume his career in a positive way so that he’s  there for the long haul.”

Woods defended his wife and denied media speculation that  there had been physical violence between the couple. The  speculation arose after a bizarre minor car accident in  November outside the Woods’ Florida home in the middle of the  night.

“Elin never hit me that night or any other night, he said.  “There has never been an episode of domestic violence in our  marriage, ever.”

He gave no account of what happened. It was that accident  that snowballed into tawdry revelations about his personal  life. Numerous women claimed to have had affairs with Woods in  the days that followed.

Woods also did not give details of his therapy. media  reports have said he was treated for sex addiction in  Mississippi.

Woods, who has two young children with Elin, did not take  questions after his statement. But six-time major winner Nick  Faldo of Britain, who credited Woods with making “a complete  apology,” said he had also left a “big question mark” about  when he would return to the fairways.

“We’ve had an apology but as golfers we’re almost still  back at square one,” Faldo said. “I’m surprised. This is a man  who was one of the mentally strongest players on a golf course  and for him not to be able to sort it out … he’s implying  he’s going to come back completely differently.”