Golf great Tiger Woods is back as the world’s #1 on the course. There he is in the latest ad, knees bent, putter in right hand, studying his next move. His eyes intently survey the green. Bold letters centered on the photo declare; “WINNING TAKES CARE OF EVERYTHING.” After his wife found Tiger texting his many mistresses and took a 9 iron to him, he’s back, minus Elin Nordegren. This time he’s courting ski champion Lindsey Vonn, who three years ago sarcastically said of the scandal Woods was then facing, “Tiger, you’re like my idol, and I too have a sex problem.” Since they both, by admission, have sex problems, this should be interesting.
There you have it. In one simple stroke of Madison Avenue arrogance, Nike has defined the moral insignia for a generation. WINNING TAKES CARE OF EVERYTHING. The unrepentant slogan actually came from Tiger’s lips. He’s been saying it all along, as if his serial adultery meant nothing so long as the drives were in the fairway and the ball was in the cup. At the time of the outrageous revelations of his large coterie of sexual partners the only spirituality Woods could muster was a reference to his Buddhist background. Tiger mused that he needed to return to the principles of his faith, whatever that meant.
WINNING TAKES CARE OF EVERYTHING. No need for heartfelt sorrow over sin. No need for shame at destroying a marriage and the lives of innocent children. Just do well what you’re paid to do and all will be fine. A marketing research firm says that Tiger’s credibility rating is about even with Ozzy Osbourne, Mike Tyson, and Kim Kardashian. His moral rating is even lower, on a biblical scale. No one wishes him to grovel in an orgy of self pity. If he is skilled, he deserves the chance to prove it on the field of play. But without any true sense of moral propriety to invoke Godly repentance, Woods will learn a hard lesson at the end of life. Winning may be everything to Nike and some of his fans, but it won’t take care of everything eternally.
