In 2009, the world was shaken by the terrible mug shot of one of the best gold players in history. After being caught asleep behind the wheel of his car with several “recreational” drugs, the sportsman was arrested. At the same time, multiple details of his private life were exposed. His sexual partners, bullied women, and even friends started talking about Tiger and his inappropriate behavior.
Financial Difficulties
After earning over $109 million in 2009, Tiger Woods found himself in a peculiar situation. Many top brands decided to cut ties with him due to his scandalous lifestyle and lots of dirty underwear being taken out by media. Tiger Woods became persona non-grata and many sponsors rightfully thought that they could easily find a more suitable character to represent their brands.
Lots of endorsement deals were terminated. In 2010, his earnings were three times less of what he made in 2009. The situation only worsened within next several years as his annual earnings dwindled to mere $9 million in 2014.
His own enterprise and many other businesses that he was a part of started losing money. He needed to cut expenses and restructure his portfolio which he did. However, he lost that glorious stream of money that he had on the peak of his career.
The Changed Man
Recently, Tiger Woods started to appear more often. Public seems to forget about his prior sins and wants the legend back. Tiger is not an explosive constantly swearing arrogant golfer. He looks like a reformed man who wants to be a role model for children and an exemplary sportsman capable of winning once again.
He still needs to pick up a couple of trophies. As of right now, Tiger looks like a shadow of himself. He is not a dominant precise golfing machine, but rather an experienced calculated player who needs to get back on track. He tries to be humbler and swear less and looks like a nice guy in general, but this is not enough to bring him back to the top.
Sponsors do not care about his reformation and need him to show some results. He is not as good as he once was, this is a fact. Can he get back in shape? This will determine whether he can attract great endorsements once again. So far, only Nike remained loyal to him despite all his wrongdoings. Right now, several companies are tracking his activities and contemplate whether they should attach their brands to a new “reformed” Tiger Woods. Hopefully, they will be able to do it.