Tiger Woods

"Arriving with a first-class ticket at Atlanta airport, Heatley was told there would be a slightly unusual boarding procedure. He was to wait in a lounge and in due course would be escorted to the plane. He did as instructed, waiting alone in the lounge until a staff member led him to his seat in the first-class cabin, which was large but empty. Shortly before the plane was due to depart, an entourage arrived. At its centre, surrounded by a phalanx of staff and Secret Service personnel, was former US President George Bush Snr and his wife, Barbara. Heatley realised that Bush Snr would also be heading for the Presidents Cup. Heatley had with him a book on the history of Augusta that a member had just given him. He wrote a note introducing himself and asking if the former president might be so kind as to sign the book. Heatley gave the book and the note to a flight attendant and asked if it could be passed to one of Bush’s staff. Heatley was reading when, five minutes later, someone approached him down the aisle. Bush sat down next to him and the pair talked for 45 minutes before Bush said, ‘I’d better get back to Barbara,’ got up and said goodbye. On a week that had already been memorable it was an unforgettable encounter. To top it off, the tournament ended in a sudden-death finish well into the evening of the final day, with Ernie Els and Tiger Woods sinking incredible putts for a draw."

"‘Overall it was a masterclass in evasion and avoidance, of speaking without saying much, of being elliptical, of answering questions but often not the questions he was asked,’ wrote John Hopkins in *The Times* the following day.[5](private://read/01jectdbce729daxqkxt7cbe8r/#mn56) He credited Woods, and indirectly Heatley as host, for not censoring the questions. While Hopkins said he would have liked the press conference to have run for longer, Woods had answered nearly 50 questions and looked each journalist in the eye as he did so. Still, Hopkins was sceptical about Woods’ responses. ‘Did he really convince us that he was genuine in his contrition? Not really. Did he address the key issues? Not really…It is not too much to suspect that after Woods had left the room he clenched his right fist and pumped the air. He had talked without saying very much…He ducked, he weaved, he blocked. Tiger Woods had pulled off another miracle shot.’"

"rol the situation.’ ‘It’s my pleasure to welcome everyone to Augusta National Golf Club and to the 2010 Masters Tournament,’ Heatley began the press conference. ‘I would also like to welcome Tiger Woods, our four-time Masters Champion. This is Tiger’s sixteenth Masters Tournament. Tiger, we are delighted to have you here with us, and what a beautiful day out there to start Masters week. Are there any comments that you would like to make before we invite questions from the floor?’ Yes, Tiger did have some comments. He was pleased to be back, he said. The galleries had been encouraging and he was touched by that. And he wanted to apologise to his fellow players ‘for having to endure what they have had to endure the past few months’. The questions began with Heatley selecting the reporters either by name or pointing when they were journalists he did not personally know. Woods was well prepared and articulate, coming across as sincere and contrite and appearing to give full answers even when he was not actually doing so. He took every question asked of him without demurring and was frank enough that he probably met the expectations of his TV audience, although not sufficiently frank for the liking of some of the media. The press conference came to an end and the media rushed out to write their stories and make their comments. It had gone as well as Heatley could have hoped, even though the media’s demand for Woods was insatiable."