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Tiger under fire

11/ 4/2006

TIGER Woods is facing outrage from disability groups after saying he putted like a "spaz" in blowing his Masters chances.

The squeaky clean golf superstar made his remarks live on the BBC after relinquishing his title and finishing joint third in Augusta.

US newspapers chose to help Woods gloss over the controversy. The LA Times changed the offending word to "wreck" while other prestigious publications did not mention his derogatory term.

A spokesman for SCOPE, the UK charity for cerebral palsy sufferers, formerly called the Spastic Society, said: "Although in the US the term 'spaz' may not be as offensive as in the UK, many people will have taken exception to linking a poor golf stroke to a spastic.

"The word 'spaz' as used in Woods' context is being used to attribute symptoms of spastic cerebral palsy to non-disabled people."

Woods, 30, who won '181,000 for finishing behind Phil Mickelson and Tim Clark has as yet refused to apologise, although BBC 5 Live commentator Iain Carter did.

Woods, who has suffered a dip in form, which he has partly attributed to his father and mentor Earl being seriously ill, has until this outburst been regarded as a perfect sporting role model.

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