Tiger Woods at US Open in 2018 from Wikimedia Creative Commons by Peetlesnumber1
No Asian American athlete arguably captivated the world like Tiger Woods. A film documenting his rise, fall and epic comeback debuts tomorrow on HBO and HBO Max.
Tiger will air in two parts over the next two Sundays and will include never before seen footage along with interviews from former caddy and close friend, Steve Williams; golf legend Sir Nick Faldo; his father Earl Woods; friend and biographer, Pete McDaniel; Tiger’s first true love, Dina Parr; and speaking publicly about the scandal that rocked Wood’s life, Rachel Uchitel, the woman at the center of the sex scandal.
Friends talk about how Woods may have been unprepared for his sudden fame. Uchitel talks about having in bed one of the world’s greatest athletes. Footage from his childhood reveals how his father Earl saw something in his son early and cultivated that talent, but also refusing to allow him to play other sports.
“Since his introduction to the world at the age of two, Tiger Woods has inhabited our collective consciousness as a prodigy, a pioneer, a champion, a global icon, and then a tabloid headline,” said directors Matthew Heineman and Matthew Hamachek in a statement to People. “After months of research and countless hours of revelatory conversations, we discovered that he has always been a projection of outsized expectations. His father, his sponsors, and his fans all made Tiger Woods into whom they wanted him to be. Our goal was to dive deeper and create an unflinching and intimate portrait of a man, who like all of us, is imperfect and inherently human.”
As you know by now, Woods is the son of Earl and Kultida Woods. Although the media rarely mentions it, Tiger is half Thai American. Although Woods refers to himself as “Cablinasian” — a mix of Caucasian, black, (American) Indian and Asian, he rarely talks about race.
Az Central recalls the decision Woods team made about appearing in a Nike commercial that played up Woods breaking the race barrier in golf. Later in his career, the superstar, according to the article, became more reluctant to discuss race issues. It’s the same criticism that stayed with Michael Jordan during his career.
Part 1 of Tiger airs Sunday, January 10. Tiger concludes with Part 2 the following Sunday on HBO and HBO Max.
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