No one’s better at escaping trouble on the golf course than Tiger Woods.
No hazard can stop him, trees don’t bother him. Thick rough? No problem. Sand? Nope. For decades, Tiger has been the supreme escape artist.
So it seems New York Times reporter John Branch thought he could trap the untrappable Tiger Woods.
Sorry John, not today, probably not tomorrow either.
Let’s all agree on one thing — politics has become a very, very messy issue these days. Want to get into a no-win situation? Start talking politics with a group of people.
I once asked my surrogate uncle, the late Angelo Dundee, how he managed to survive the storms that constantly swirled around the great Muhammad Ali, the boxer he trained when Ali still went by Cassius Clay.
Angie’s response was simple and I carry it in my life’s lessons to this day: “I don’t talk about religion or politics,” said Angelo, a very wise man who was beloved by so many.
We can all probably agree that those words from Angelo were very wise, very astute. When the Nation of Islam insisted that Ali get rid of Dundee as his trainer due to the fact that Angelo was Caucasian, Ali pushed back on that suggestion, told the Nation that if Angelo wasn’t in his corner, he wouldn’t fight and on top of that, Ali hit them with this gem: “Angie ain’t white, he’s Italian!”
Which brings us back to Tiger Woods vs. the New York Times reporter.
Branch, like so many, threw Donald Trump at Tiger and that’s a tall order when it comes to comments. Keep in mind, Tiger had just finished 72 frustrating holes up at Ridgewood. When your putter becomes annoying, golf is a task.
Branch tried to bait Woods into the immigration discussion. He tried to bait Woods into the race relations discussion.
Sorry John, this is Tiger Woods, not LeBron James.
For Branch’s edification, Tiger knew Donald Trump long before Trump took up residence in the White House.
Branch should also know that Tiger was also chummy with Barak Obama, played golf with him, hung out with him, visited him in the White House.
Branch should also know that Tiger is chummy with Condoleezza Rice, former Secretary of State for George W., as in Bush. They have the Stanford connection and she’s a member at Augusta National.
Yes, Tiger is smart enough, sophisticated and skilled enough to have friends on both sides of the aisle, if you will.
Someone also forgot to tell Mr. Branch that Tiger is Nike’s major brand ambassador. Tiger was pimping Nike gear when LeBron James was 13 years old.
Tiger understands that men, women and children of all religions and all political persuasions buy the stuff that Nike sells. Tiger also understands the first rule of business — don’t piss off your customers.
Which brings us back to Tiger and Trump.
Branch took a sports setting a golf setting, and tried to draw Woods into a political debate.
Branch, like the rest of the liberal media, implied that just knowing Trump was a bad thing for Woods — Tiger knew better:
“I’ve known Donald for a number of years,” Woods said. “We’ve played golf together. We’ve had dinner together. I’ve known him pre-presidency and obviously during his presidency.”
Oh, yeah, let’s draw Tiger into the immigration quagmire:
“Well, he’s the President of the United States. You have to respect the office. No matter who is in the office, you may like, dislike personality or the politics, but we all must respect the office.”
Branch, sinking in the quicksand of Tiger’s experience with questions, threw one last Hail Mary — hey, let’s play the race card — Hey Tiger, what about the state of race relations in America?:
“No. I just finished 72 holes and I’m really hungry.”
Which was Tiger’s very polite, very diplomatic way of saying:
Screw you, John.
Maybe Mr. New York Times figured he’d catch Woods in a moment of weakness.
Think again.
“He is very smart,” President Trump said of Woods in what seemed like Tweet No. 1,375,532.
Yes, Tiger is very smart, very skilled, very polished.
He knows Donald Trump, has played golf with him, hung out with him. Knows Barak Obama, has played golf with him, hung out with him.
And that’s all we’ve got to say about this.
