Tiger Woods, who remains the preeminent name brand in the world of golf, has demonstrated over the years that he has learned well from the Michael Jordan school of apathy and apoliticism. Keep quiet. Don’t speak out. Stack those chips.
But after getting blistered in June for his take on the populous insurrection in light of George Floyd’s death, Eldrick Woods has a different view on the Black Lives Matter movement now than most people would think.
“That’s how society develops,” he said as he prepares to enter the Memorial tournament near Columbus, Ohio, according to CNN. “That’s how we grow, that’s how we move forward, that’s how we have fairness.”
Woods was trampled in June for barely mentioning George Floyd while praising police officers and simultaneously chastising people for “burning down the very neighborhoods that we live in.”
Woods is the winner of 15 major golf championships, which is second all-time, and the winner of 82 PGA Tour events, which is tied for the most ever. But he has been derided for allegedly being allergic to sociopolitical pronouncements, much like his friend Jordan. This time, Woods was not so circumspect when asked about BLM.
“I think change is fantastic but as long as we make changes without hurting the innocent,” Woods said. “Unfortunately that has happened. Hopefully, that doesn’t happen in the future but a movement and change is fantastic.”
Interesting take, seeing that Woods counts the president as one of his close friends. Both have named-dropped the other when regaling their golfing outings together in the past. The commander-in-chief, however, criminalized BLM as a “terrorist organization” and characterized a mural of BLM in Washington as “denigrating” and a “symbol of hate.”
The White House has yet to respond to Woods’ latest comments. Remember, the 74-year-old gave Woods, 44, the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 2019.
