Women not feeling the love from Tiger
There are a few reasons Tiger Woods chose the Masters Tournament for his return from a self-imposed four-month hiatus from golf while learning to manage his sexual behavior.
Augusta National course is where Woods won his first Masters in 1997, and its hoity-toity lust for long-established rules of golf etiquette should insulate him from hecklers.
But it is not the best place for Woods to debut his alleged rediscovered respect for women, considering Augusta National doesn't allow females to join the club.
"If Mr. Woods is looking for redemption for his transgressions, I find it odd that he would head to a men-only club," Susan Scanlan, chair of the National Council of Women's Organizations, told ABCnews.com.
USA Today sports columnist Christine Brennan wrote: "That this is the place that Tiger Woods decides to come back with these apparently well-documented issues that he has with women is ironic at best, and, I guess you could say, a slap in the face to women at worst."
(Woods might have liked to spank women, but there have been no reports of slapping them.)
His decision to play Augusta National, however, probably was made by his wife, Elin, precisely because there are no female members.
In a related story, Woods had hired Ari Fleischer as a public relations consultant. Fleischer is best known for shaping the public image of President George W. Bush.
Brad Dickson of the Omaha World Herald writes: "Tiger is planning to show up on an aircraft carrier in a flak jacket proclaiming he's already won the Masters."
But on Monday, not long after Fleischer acknowledged being part of Woods' PR team, he quit the job.
■ PAIR OF ACES -- Charles T. White nailed a hole-in-one on the ninth hole Sunday at Bernardo Heights Country Club and Kitty Tinker followed with an ace as the next member of the foursome on the course in Rancho Bernardo, Calif.
A 2000 Golf Digest study calculated the odds of two golfers in the same foursome acing the same hole at 17 million to one.
Or roughly the same odds that Woods' wife will attend the Masters.
■ NETS BAGGED -- The New Jersey Nets' sad-sack season appeared to hit another low Monday when the team's chief executive, Brett Yormark, reportedly got into a shouting match with a fan wearing a paper bag over his head.
The Nets, 7-63 going into today's game, extended a franchise record with their 14th straight loss at home Monday. New Jersey must win two of its final 12 games to avoid breaking the Philadelphia 76ers' record for futility (9-73) set in the 1972-73 season.
The New York Daily News identified the fan as Chris Lisi of Middletown, N.J. Yormark got into a shouting match with Lisi and another fan.
Yormark should be happy any fans were at the game.
He should see the good news: New Orleans Saints fans originated the unknown-fan protest, and 30 years later they won the Super Bowl.
That means the Nets could be in the 2040 NBA Finals.
COMPILED BY JEFF WOLF
LAS VEGAS REVIEW-JOURNAL
