The Mating Tiger

Who was not surprised by Tiger Woods’ extra-marital adventures?  After all, wasn’t he the image of the perfect athlete, father, husband and businessman?  I was certainly taken aback.  Not that I am a big fan of Tiger. I always found him a bit too cocky, self-centered, egotistical, capitalistic (in a word American) to my taste.  Don’t get me wrong, he is certainly the most talented golfer I have ever seen but that is not enough to endear him to me.  The events of the last few weeks have certainly not helped in that matter.  Of course I knew tigers were an endangered species but I didn’t think it was necessary for them to mate with every big breasted blond female they could find…
What concerns me the most about this though is the story behind the story, the consequences of the “Tigergate”, and the fallouts from Mr Woods’ overactive libido.  The effects of Tiger’s improprieties will be far greater then most people think.  Of course TV ratings for golf tournaments will go down; attendance numbers will dwindle; sponsorship will be more scarce; and the combination of these factors will certainly impact the PGA tour pro’s bottom line.  But, in my opinion, that is just the tip of the iceberg.  The greatest impact of this story will be felt in places like Virginia, the Carolinas, Florida, California and other regions that cater to the weekend warrior golfers.  Why? You ask.  Well, it is a pretty simple logic chain:  Tiger Woods is a golfer – Tiger managed to attract the attention of women that were not necessarily drawn to golf – Everyone, including these women, now know that Tiger Woods took advantage of his frequent golf tournaments to partake in his second favourite pastime - Weekend warrior golfers love to go on golfing trips with their buddies once in a while – Most of these golfers have the same second favourite pastime as Tiger – women have impeccable logic when it comes to sports and sex.  Thus, getting permission to book a boys’ golf holiday will be near impossible for the next few years ergo don’t invest in golf courses down south in the next few years.  All jokes aside, what will be the first thought going through any woman’s mind when her husband starts taking about taking a golf trip with his friends?  I certainly think that it will about holes of a totally different nature then those traditionally associated with golf.  If I was myself a weekend warrior golfer, I would not even dare ask for at least a few years and, even then, I would feel the need to include an all expenses paid trip to a spa as part of the negotiation, making the cost of the golf trip prohibitive. 
As you can see, there is more to this story then meets the eye.  Tiger’s mating habits will definitely have an effect on the economic recovery of numerous regions that rely on golf tourism, and on the amateur golfers that were counting on a 3 day break with the boys…