Sport
Tiger Woods fields questions from fans
Tiger Woods reacts to his birdie putt on the 18th green to force a playoff with Rocco Mediate during the final round of the 108th U.S. Open at the Torrey Pines Golf Course on June 15, 2008 in San Diego, California. PHOTO/Doug Pensinger/Getty Images
The only questions Tiger Woods fielded before his next tournament came from his fans.
Instead of a news conference before this week’s Wells Fargo Championship, Woods answered 19 questions Monday in a 15-minute video posted on his website. The questions were submitted through Facebook and Twitter.
The timing of the decision was peculiar. Woods is coming off his worst performance ever at the Masters, a tie for 40th in which he finished 15 shots behind and was roundly criticized for kicking his 9-iron in disgust after a poor tee shot on the par-3 16th hole in the second round.
Woods typically speaks to the media before every tournament. This time, he will not speak to reporters until his first round Thursday at Quail Hollow.
His agent, Mark Steinberg, did not immediately return a phone call from The Associated Press. He earlier told The Charlotte Observer that Woods’ trading the traditional media for social media was not in response to the criticism he received at the Masters.
“The media will continue to have access to him,” Steinberg said. “This isn’t anything more than a couple of times a year to interact with the fans. They deserve that. This isn’t intended to make a statement. This is intended to be more inclusive. This isn’t a statement whatsoever. Some in the media might interpret it that way, but that’s not the intent.”
Among the questions he took for the video:
