Tiger Woods’ crash: Airtime, innuendo and bad headlines

Eldrick Tiger Woods was involved in a crash at 2.25am outside his Florida home. He was hurt but is now OK (take a deep breath IMG and the VIC Government, you can have another crack at him next year for the Oz Masters).

The news of this deeply private man (yet public figure of unquestionable news value) crashing his car is news. Throw in unfounded rumours of  an affair, add golf club wielding wife, throw in a pinch of tall poppy syndrome and you have a sexy scandal … and as many Tiger/golfing analogies as you can think of!

This morning I got up to head to the Crikey bunker and whilst I was getting ready saw Channel Seven’s Sunrise showing the Tiger 911 tapes. Really.

“I have a neighbor, he hit the tree. And we came out here just to see what was going on. I see him and he’s laying down…”

Awesome television. The Sunrise team were even a little miffed they stooped that low.

So I thought I’d scour the world’s newspapers to see what the world’s finest subeditors could come up with regarding Tiger and drive and rough etc.

And boy was I disappointed. It appears the first people they fired in the great newspaper death wars were the people who write good headlines…

From the NY Post:

The Daily News:

Canada’s Edmonton Sun:

The Sunday Times of India:

From India’s DNA (Daily News & Analysis):

But the best angle of this whole crappy story goes to The UK Independent‘s Susie Mesure who asked if Woods’ crash follows Thierry Henry’s Hand of Frog goal in The curse of Gillette.

Now that’s interesting.