Crash compounds Woods’ problems
November 28, 2009 - 10:00 pm
A rough week for Tiger Woods got more complicated Friday.
Even before his 2:25 a.m. traffic accident on Friday, numerous Internet reports indicated the National Enquirer is preparing to publish that Woods is involved with a former nightclub VIP host with a Las Vegas connection.
Woods was treated and released from a hospital after crashing his sports utility vehicle outside his home in an Orlando, Fla., suburb.
The celebrity Web site TMZ.com reported that a Florida law enforcement official said Woods was injured during "a domestic issue" and was attempting to get away from his wife who struck the vehicle with a golf club. Local police say Woods' wife smashed a window in the vehicle to help him escape.
The National Enquirer reportedly alleges that Woods has been linked to Rachel Uchitel, a former VIP director at Tao nightclub at The Venetian.
The Enquirer will reportedly publish a photograph taken earlier this month of Uchitel in Melbourne, Australia. She was allegedly there at the same time Woods was playing in a tournament. Uchitel was seen checking into the Crown Towers, where Woods was allegedly staying, and she was seen going to the 35th floor, which houses the VIP suite, the Enquirer report allegedly says.
Uchitel was interviewed and photographed by the Las Vegas Review-Journal for a December 2005 article about nightclubs.
As a velvet rope gatekeeper, she was asked what tip she had for club-goers.
Don't get out your wallet unless it's necessary, she told R-J reporter Xazmin Garza. "The biggest tip I've received was $1,000. And I would've let him in without it."
Uchitel's fiancé died in the World Trade Center terrorist attacks on Sept. 11, 2001, according to published reports.
Woods' attorney told the Enquirer that Woods might have been in the same club with Uchitel in May but vehemently denied an affair.
She worked at the Griffin nightclub in New York earlier this year, which is co-owned by former Pure Management Group managing partner Steve Davidovice.
Woods married former Swedish nanny Elin Nordegren, 29, in October 2004. Daughter Sam was born in June 2007 and son Charlie in February.
THE SCENE AND HEARD
U.S. Sen. John Ensign has agreed to a commercial-free interview from 8-9 a.m. Monday with KXNT-AM, 840 host Alan Stock. It is the Republican's first in-depth interview since admitting in June to an affair with his aide, Cynthia Hampton.
SIGHTINGS
Michael Jackson's longtime dermatologist Arnold Klein, at "Donny & Marie" (Flamingo Las Vegas) on Friday with a group that included Alicia Jacobs, the entertainment reporter for KVBC-TV, Channel 3. Klein, who had Debbie Rowe on his staff for years, has denied reports that he was the sperm donor for any of Jackson's kids. ... CNN talk-show host Larry King and wife Shawn, with a party of 14 at Criss Angel's Cirque du Soleil "Believe" show at the Luxor on Thursday. Highly doubtful that they will be taking in the "Donny & Marie" show. Shawn King, a longtime friend of Marie Osmond, remains furious that Osmond recently fired Karl Engemann, Shawn's father. In a recent Twitter posting, Shawn King wrote: "Question: if u signed a contract to pay 15% of any business and you've been in busness w/ them for 35 years, is it fair to now say you're being overcharced for the standard rate in your business (which is 15%) and you want to pay 2.5 to 5%? I'm puzzled."
PUNCHLINE
"Security screamed, 'That's not an illegal immigrant you're yelling at. That's the Indian prime minister, Mr. Dobbs.' " -- From David Letterman's Top Ten Surprises at (the) White House State Dinner
Norm Clarke can be reached at (702) 383-0244 or norm@reviewjournal.com. Find additional sightings and more online at www.normclarke.com.