Yesterday we heard advance details from Elin Woods’ interview in People Magazine. Elin spent 19 hours over several days with People’s reporter. She told them that she had no idea before that Thanksgiving night that Tiger was cheating, that she never hit Tiger with a golf club as rumored, and that she was devastated. “The world betrayal isn’t strong enough. I felt like my whole world had fallen apart” Elin would not discuss the details of the night of Tiger’s accident nor would she disclose the settlement amount she received from Tiger. (Which is thought to be upwards of $100 million, although numbers in the media may be pure speculation.) One thing that I found interesting is that Elin has been working on her bachelors degree in Psychology by taking night classes at a local college for years and she’s just 40 credits away from graduating. The reporter who spoke to her said on The Today Show yesterday that Elin hopes to become a counselor and work with children from broken homes.

Some of you were disappointed that Elin finally granted an interview, which she claims will be her only one, after remaining silent for nearly nine months. I can’t blame her for wanting to get her side of the story out there. I also think that she did it with a lot of grace and tact, especially considering all the sordid details we’ve heard in the interim. If she paid any attention to the news, and if it’s true that she had no idea about her husband’s infidelity until last November, she must have been flabbergasted and fuming.

In response to the news of Elin’s interview, Tiger initially issued a brief statement saying “Elin is a wonderful mother. I know that the two of us will do everything we can to help our children adjust to this new family situation.” He’s since given a press conference in which he talked about his career and addressed questions about Elin’s interview and their divorce, which just became final this week.

Woods today added to that statement at a press conference where he again emphasised the importance of his children.

‘It’s a sad time in our lives,’ he told reporters at The Barclays golf tournament in New Jersey.

‘I wish her [Nordegren] the best in everything. We’re looking forward to how we can help our kids the best way we possibly can. And that’s the most important thing.’

When a reporter asked Woods if he still loves Nordegren, he didn’t answer, instead repeating; ‘That’s the most important thing.’

Woods was also asked whether he felt relief at the split. He said: ‘I don’t think that’s the word. I think it’s just more sadness.

‘Because I don’t think you ever go into a marriage looking to get divorced. That’s the thing. That’s why it is sad.’

The golfer also appeared to express regret for his past behaviour.

‘My actions certainly led us to this decision,’ he said. ‘And I’ve certainly made a lot of errors in my life and that’s something I’m going to have to live with.’

After saying that the divorce ‘was a lot more difficult than I was letting on,’ Woods referred to his wife’s People interview.

‘I certainly understand that she is sad,’ he said. ‘And I feel the same way.’

Earlier, in a statement to the magazine, he again discussed his two children.

‘Personally, I am learning to balance family and golf. My children come first and always will, but I also appreciate golf more than ever,’ he said.

He added that he cherished the time he was able to spend with the children, describing how he enjoys nothing more than hitting balls at the golf range with 18-month-old Charlie and taking three-year-old Sam to school.

Paying tribute to his ex-wife, who he called a ‘wonderful mother, ‘ Woods also called for privacy, saying: ‘This is a very painful, personal and private time for our family.’

[From The Daily Mail]

His people told him to say he was “sad” and maybe he is, but it came off as a talking point more than genuine sentiment, especially the way he kept repeating it as his go-to adjective. Elin put up with a lot and it does seem like Tiger feels guilty that he put her through all that. The guy was making very risky moves just waiting to get caught, though. On some level he must have known it was inevitable. Tiger’s golf game has really suffered in the past few months and his attempted comeback following the scandal hasn’t been successful. He’s still ranked number 1 in the world but he’s performed very poorly in recent tournaments and there are a lot of younger up-and-coming golfers ready to take his place. We’ll have to see if he ever gets his groove back or if he’ll be struggling for the rest of his career. No wonder he’s sad. He screwed up more than just his marriage and family.