The Passion of Tiger Woods

More than a month after Tiger Woods' infamous driveway crash, is it possible yet to gain any perspective on why we are all so fascinated by this glimpse into his personal life that has turned into what many believe to be the biggest sports story of the year and maybe the decade?

It's sex and race, of course, but only partly. More than that, it's the incomparable combination of fame and excellence that has developed around him over the past dozen years. He is insanely talented at golf, so good that none of us can relate to him - not even his PGA peers. And he has become famous, certainly, but only in the most superficial level. What have we learned about him during his career before this incident?

He's married and has two small children, who he reveals to us online through staged photos. He has a bad temper, as displayed by his regular outbursts of four-letter words and flying golf clubs on the course. He has been under the microscope since appearing on the Mike Douglas Show at age three. His father taught him golf, as well as his drive, focus and dedication. He is of mixed race - he coined the term "Caublanasian" early in his career to reflect his rich mix of genetic material.

But we've never known him. He's seemed boring. Reports from the Tour and the occasional old friend who has dared speak outside the circle have invariably described him as nerdy, not too charismatic, pretty bland - Urkel to his Stanford golf mates. He never says anything interesting in interviews, after once showing his true personality to a GQ writer way back in 1996.

Because of all this, we were fascinated by him. Superhuman golfer. Blank slate personality. Pitch man extraordinaire. We wanted a peek - just one peek - to provide some real context. We need to know him on a greater level than he allows. All these years we've had an unbalanced, dysfunctional relationship with him, where he makes himself so attractive to us, but never really lets us in.

How did he get so good at golf? What is it like to hang out with him? What does he talk about? Does he really use all the products he endorses (Buick and Tag Heuer)? And does he really know anything about telecommunications (AT&T) or business consulting (Accenture)?

Well, Thanksgiving Day 2009, we found out a whole lot about Tiger Woods. And most of it we didn't want to know. But we were fascinated at the open curtain. Serial cheater? Porn stars? Reliance on Ambien? Secret Las Vegas life? Far less than perfect marriage? And (potentially worst of all) being treated by a Canadian doctor implicated in human growth hormone controversies? This is what we haven't seen all these years? This is the insight we've been craving?

And so we've soaked it up. Every last sordid, disgusting, gossip-rag drop of it.

It's easy to say we've loved every detail, every confession (no matter how small), every new revelation. But I don't think we've loved it. We've certainly been intrigued by it. But I don't think we've loved it. It's also easy to say we expected more from him. But I don't think that's it, either.

I think our fascination with him these past weeks is the result of the void he's left us in over these dozen years. We are so relieved just to finally get something from him. Some insight, some access, some perspective.

We still don't know how he golfs so well. But at least we now know what kind of person he is. That is not a judgment. It's just a curiosity satisfied.