Fall of Fame

Yes! The Tiger’s saga is making me think about it and now write about it.

Tiger woods’ life had all of us believe that he had a perfect life - a great golfing career, a brand ambassador for top brands, a picture-perfect family, a fortune in billions, scandal and controversy-free life. Contrary to that, Tiger’s life proves to be anything but perfect. Tiger did succeed in hiding his dirty linen at least till he became the first billionaire sportsperson.

Not that Tiger woods has done something that most of us didn’t. Almost everyone who is screaming foul at top of their voice has done it. I feel the world need not entrust different moral standards to celebrities. If anything, people are just comforting themselves that they are not alone, they have someone as good and powerful as Tiger Woods does a similar act.

By all standards what Tiger Woods did to his wife and children, is wrong. I think he should be given his space for regret or remorse if any and to get his life back in order. It’s none of my business to reprimand Tiger Woods for whom he sleeps with or how many times he has cheated on his wife and children (though I feel sorry for them). If I have to assess him just for what he does i.e. playing golf, then I think it is sensible for us to judge only his sport and not his off-the-field sports. If he is adjudged “The Athlete of the Decade”, then he deserves it for taking golf to a different level (money & popularity).

But if he makes millions by endorsing products to billions of people on the planet, then for sure his life does come under the public scanner.  I understand and fully endorse the fact that celebrities are entitled to their share of privacy cos’ they are humans after all. But they need to realize that if they have the power to influence people’s choices with their endorsements, then it is not just due to career merit but also because of the image they have projected of themselves. And if that goes wrong, obviously people do have the right to disassociate themselves. Who would want to buy products endorsed by sportspersons who have a bad off-field records?

If Tiger woods golfing merits and squeaky-clean image fetched his billions, he is probably going to lose as much for his tainted image and indefinite golfing break due to his transgressions. Makes me feel that consequences are relative to our lifestyle and status.  Probably his celebrity status is making him go through trauma many times more than an ordinary person would go through for the same misactions.

To add to Tiger’s woes, the count of the women goes on and on. I wonder if he himself remembers them all. What’s with these women? All of a sudden they all want their 60 seconds of fame and $$$ for interviews to trash magazines??

Will celebrities learn anything from it?? Tiger woods should have been a bit more careful. He had Becker, Beckham, and many more with a similar fate to give him a prelude to the consequences. But the difference is that they had a ‘playboy’ image for themselves and the world continued to love them for who they are. Illogical beings that we are, we don’t mind the bad ones continuing to be bad. The problem arises when the good becomes ugly. “You are exactly that Mr. Woods, unfortunately”.

Just one moment of madness is enough for a person to make an exit from the hall of fame. One moment of madness is enough to tarnish years of hard work and laurels. One moment of madness is enough to make people change the way they look at you forever.

How hefty a price this is, depends on your emotional quotient....