Masters: CBS did OK with Tiger

I thought CBS might sugarcoat the Tiger Woods story at the Masters. Lord knows that CBS has been sucking up to the Masters for decades. No reason to go stepping on toes now.

Of course, Billy Payne, the grand pooh-bah at Augusta National, issued an early warning that Tiger wasn’t exactly off limits, when he assailed Tiger in a pre-tournament press conference.

And CBS, particularly Jim Nantz, was above board in its treatment of Tiger. Nantz remarked repeatedly about the gallery’s reaction to Tiger, which was mostly positive but not completely. Nantz didn’t go into sordid details about Tiger’s troubles, but that’s OK. Who needed a refresher course? Everyone knows what Tiger’s been up to. No reason to rehash it in front of your kids and mother-in-law on a pleasant Sunday afternoon.

And I loved the post-round interviews of Tiger, mainly because they gave us a glimpse of a troubled man. Tiger controlled himself in interviews very well, but Sunday, he gave one of the best answers I’ve ever heard. When Peter Kostis quizzed him about keeping his emotions in check, Tiger said everyone was making way too big a deal about that.

Truer words were never spoken. Anyone who thought Tiger was going to turn into some kind of flower child was nuts. Maybe he will learn to watch his mouth a little, but when Tiger Woods stops getting mad at bad shots, he ceases to be Tiger Woods. Not going to happen with a little sex therapy in Hattiesburg, Miss.