Tiger Woods plays golf with Michael Jordan,
tapes Oprah Winfrey show
By Ed Sherman
The Chicago Tribune
(KRT)
CHICAGO - Tiger Woods has a new friend. His name is Mike.
The new Masters champion spent the weekend hanging out with
Michael Jordan, playing golf, going to a basketball game. You
know, doing things icons do.
It's a relationship made in Nike marketing heaven. The pair
hit it off so well, Woods calls Jordan "Mike."
Woods insisted he and Jordan "broke even" during
their golf match Sunday at the Merit Club in Libertyville. Woods
didn't say how many strokes he gave Jordan.
Woods enjoyed the weekend, but for him, it also proved to be
a valuable learning experience.
Jordan already has embarked on the manic road that Woods is
about to travel.
"Mike is in a position where my life is going," said
Woods, who taped an interview Monday with Oprah Winfrey at Harpo
Studios; the show will air locally Thursday.
"I didn't know how to handle certain situations. Like
all the visability, the press, privacy. Mike has helped me out.
He's been there. What better person to relate to me than an athlete
relating to another athlete. Mike's almost like my big brother."
Jordan seems to have accepted the role.
"My responsibility to Tiger Woods right now is to be a
friend," Jordan said. "He is going to endure certain
things I endured. In no way am I trying to jump into his spotlight.
I'd rather for him to enjoy the opportunities that he has in his
life. If I can be of any help, I will be there to try and support
him."
Woods was conducting his first interview since winning the
green jacket. He wore a gray suit and was sporting some growth
on his chin. He appeared with his father, Earl, who was promoting
his new book, "Training a Tiger."
Woods called the "lack of privacy" the hardest thing
he has had to handle. He wouldn't even submit to any interviews
with the local media, as he quickly was wisked away in his limo.
Woods spent last week with a friend vacationing in Cancun.
However, he learned Cancun hardly was the place to get away as
he found himself trying to escape the crowds.
"Instead of spring break, it was jail break," Woods
said.
"Well, surprise, surprise," Winfrey said.
(Terry Armour contributed to this story.)
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