• Image gurus to Woods: Go public like Letterman
Woods says in a statement on his website that injuries won't allow him to play in the Chevron World Challenge. He said he would return to competition next year.
"I am extremely disappointed that I will not be at my tournament this week," Woods said. "I am certain it will be an outstanding event and I'm very sorry that I can't be there."
His decision to withdraw comes after a car crash left him with cuts and bruises when his SUV hit a fire hydrant and a tree early Friday outside his home in a gated Florida golf community. Woods was treated and released at a hospital after the accident, and has not been seen in public since.
By skipping the tournament, Woods will escape having to face TV cameras and a horde of media seeking more details about the smashup. Woods released a statement on Sunday saying the accident was his fault, but he did not address any of the questions still swirling around it. He asked that it remain "a private matter," but with the Florida Highway Patrol still investigating and the media in full pursuit, Woods may not get his way.
Woods even faced questions from fans leaving comments on his own website. Most voiced support for the golfer, but some said he should address the questions about his own actions and those of his wife, Elin Nordegren, before and after the accident.
Woods hasn't answered questions from Florida troopers, either, turning them down three days in a row. Meanwhile, the tabloid-fueled rumors continue to swirl around perhaps the richest and most-recognisable athletes in the world.
Four cars were parked in Woods' driveway on Monday, but no lights appeared to be on inside. A new fire hydrant had already replaced the one that Woods plowed into. A dirt hole and an orange barricade remained in the old hydrant's place.
Woods, who both hosts and plays in the Chevron World Challenge, was there last year even though he couldn't play because he was recovering from knee surgery. His absence this year will be the first since the tournament - which has only an 18-player field - began in 1999.
Though he cited injuries from the accident in withdrawing from the tournament, Woods didn't specifically say what those injuries included. A neighbour who called 911 after Woods ran over the hydrant and into a tree said he was unconscious and laying outside his SUV. His wife told Windermere police she used a golf club to smash the back windows to help him out.
Woods' only public comment has been via two statements released on his website, one saying the accident was his fault alone and the second saying he was withdrawing from the tournament.
"This is a private matter and I want to keep it that way," Woods said. "Although I understand there is curiosity, the many false, unfounded and malicious rumors that are currently circulating about my family and me are irresponsible. ...
"I appreciate all the concern and well wishes that we have received," the statement concluded. "But, I would also ask for some understanding that my family and I deserve some privacy no matter how intrusive some people can be."
