It's been ten rumor-filled weeks since the Tiger Woods Scandal broke, and you know what I'm getting really tired of? Guys chastising Tiger for cheating. ...In fact, it's starting to annoy me. Big time.
Probably because the consternation is frequently followed by a self-congratulatory segue into how they've never cheated on their spouse. ~ As I've said numerous times since Thanksgiving, I'd far rather be married to a husband who cheats than one who congratulates himself for not cheating... and I've discovered that most women share my sentiment on this. ~ The fact is, I've found women to be far less sanctimonious and judgmental than men when it comes to the so called "Tiger transgressions".
Women ...particularly married women... also seem, far less likely than men to blame the marital woes of Mr. and Mrs. Woods on mistresses.
More than anything else the Tiger Woods scandal confirmed what many of us have long believed: that when it comes to issues of sex, marriage, family and fidelity... men and women simply experience things differently, and as such shouldn't attempt to speak for the the opposite sex... or presume to know what he/she wants. Because chances are, you don't. And that brings me to New York Daily News sports columnist Filip Bondy. I don't know Mr. Bondy... and he may or may not be one of the self-congratulatory non-cheaters... but his article in the "Tiger Woods section" of today's Daily News makes it clear from the get-go that he sees himself as a defender of the fair sex, indignantly calling Tiger Woods' decision to come back at the Masters in Augusta, "his latest shot at women".
The article touches briefly on institutionalized sexism at Augusta National which is, in fact, an issue that many women ... and quite a few men... agree is worthy of ongoing debate. However the Daily News sports scribe quickly moves on to the "gallivanting, womanizing ways" of Mr. Woods. Then later, comes a misguided attempt at analogy,
"Woods treated his wife in a similar fashion, barring her from membership in his real life while objectifying other women in the worst sort of way. He was playing. Elin was watching, never fully informed about the rules of his game".Bondy also hints that he feels Tiger should have skipped at least one major to show remorse. And if that's how Mr. Bondy sees it that's fine but he seems surprised that women's groups aren't lining up in solidarity with his condemnation of the Augusta comeback plan. And he expresses disappointment that not even the once-militant Martha Burk would return his emails on the subject.
That brings me back to the Man/Woman dichotomy. And here's the thing guys: most women don't take Tiger's infidelities personally. That's right. Much as you may think they do...much as you may think they should...they just don't. For us ladies, it's someone else's marriage, and we're generally not going to presume we know what was happening in it. With Tiger Woods, most women I spoke to just didn't see the extramarital affairs as relevant... and it hardly surprises me that serious women's organizations would decline to associate an ongoing struggle for equality with salacious, pop-culture rumors.
As far as the choice to come back at Augusta, it appears to have been a decision made the way Tiger Woods and his team have always made decisions. Again women just aren't taking it personally.
And finally, Tiger's hypothetical slap in every woman's face? The one Mr. Bondy ends his article with? Nope, we're not feeling than either.
Top Photo:Getty Images/Middle Photo:GolfGirlMedia/Bottom Image:Getty ImagesGolf Pundit Patricia Hannigan, for a female perspective on the Tiger Woods scandal.
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