February 19

This Day in History

Also on This Day

Lead Story
Donner Party rescued, 1847
American Revolution
Congress overlooks Benedict Arnold for promotion, 1777
Automotive
Yarborough wins fourth Daytona 500, 1984
Civil War
Yankee General Francis Preston Blair Jr. born, 1821
Cold War
United States calls situation in El Salvador a communist plot, 1981
Crime
Angry San Francisco vigilantes take the law into their own hands, 1851
Disaster
Tornadoes strike the Southeast, 1884
General Interest
Copernicus born, 1473
Aaron Burr arrested for treason, 1807
Roosevelt signs Executive Order 9066, 1942
Solzhenitsyn reunited with family, 1974
Hollywood
Bob Hope marries Dolores Reade, 1934
Literary
Amy Tan's birthday, 1952
Music
Thomas Alva Edison patents the phonograph, 1878
Old West
Rescuers reach Donner Party, 1847
Presidential
FDR signs Executive Order 9066, 1942
Sports
Patrick Roy gets 300th win as NHL goalie, 1996
Tiger Woods apologizes for extramarital affairs, 2010
Vietnam War
South Vietnamese coup unsuccessful, 1965
Chicago Seven sentenced, 1970
World War I
British navy bombards Dardanelles, 1915
World War II
Marines invade Iwo Jima, 1945

Sports

Feb 19, 2010:

Tiger Woods apologizes for extramarital affairs

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On this day in 2010, professional golfer Tiger Woods gives a televised news conference in which he apologizes for his marital infidelities and admits to “selfish” and “foolish” behavior. The 34-year-old Woods, one of the greatest players in the history of golf as well as one of the world’s highest-paid athletes, read a scripted statement at PGA headquarters in Ponte Vedra Beach, Florida, before a pre-selected audience that included his mother but not his Swedish-born wife, Elin Nordegren. Members of the media were present but were not allowed to ask questions.

Woods’ statement marked the first time he had spoken publicly since crashing his car into a fire hydrant and tree near his home in Windermere, Florida, an Orlando suburb, around 2:30 a.m. on November 27, 2009. The low-speed, single-car crash left him briefly hospitalized. Nordegren reportedly told police she heard the crash from the couple’s home, went outside and smashed the rear window of Woods’ Cadillac Escalade in an attempt to extricate him. After the accident, Woods initially declined to speak with Florida Highway Patrol officers and issued no immediate public statement, sparking rumors and speculation about why he was leaving his house at that hour. At the time of the incident, a tabloid newspaper was reporting allegations that Woods had cheated on his wife.

In the days and weeks following the car crash, Woods saw his stellar reputation shattered as more than a dozen young women came forward to publicly claim they had been romantically involved with the married golfer, who wed Nordegren in 2004. Woods and his wife met in 2001, while she was working as a nanny for Swedish golf pro Jesper Parnevik.

On December 2, 2009, Woods issued a statement on his Web site requesting privacy from the public while he dealt with unspecified “personal failings.” A little over a week later, on December 11, it was announced he was taking an indefinite leave from competitive golf. He reportedly went on to spend time in rehab for sexual addiction. As the scandal continued to unfold in the media, Woods, a golf child prodigy who at age 21 became the youngest-ever Masters champion and went on to earn millions of dollars annually in endorsement deals, was dropped by some of his corporate sponsors, including AT&T and Accenture; others, notably Nike, continued their contracts with Woods.

On April 8, 2010, less than two months after Woods’ apology-filled Florida news conference, he returned to professional golf by competing in the Masters Tournament in Augusta, Georgia. The event received widespread coverage, and Woods finished the tournament tied for fourth place.

Four months later, in August, Woods and his wife officially divorced. Nordegren, with whom Woods has two children, reportedly received a $100 million settlement.

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This Week in History, Feb 19 - Feb 25

Feb 19, 1996
Patrick Roy gets 300th win as NHL goalie
Feb 19, 2010
Tiger Woods apologizes for extramarital affairs
Feb 20, 1998
Tara Lipinski becomes youngest Olympic figure skating gold medalist
Feb 21, 1952
Dick Button wins second Olympic figure skating gold
Feb 22, 1980
U.S. hockey pulls off Miracle on Ice
Feb 23, 1980
Eric Heiden speed skates into Olympic history
Feb 24, 1982
The Great One scores 77th goal
Feb 25, 1964
Cassius Clay defeats Sonny Liston

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