Golf Writers Turn Their Backs on Tiger Woods

950-member association refuses to attend Woods press conference Friday, saying the no-questions format "goes against everything we believe"

So much for Tiger Woods' ace in the hole.

Saying it would give credence to an obviously staged event, the Golf Writers Association of America has announced that it is going to pass on the press conference the No. 1 golfer in the world called to address the madness that has been his life since November.

Not that the 950 members of the GWAA are going to completely ignore what Woods has to say...

It's just that none of them are going to make a point of going to Ponte Vedra Beach, Fla., in order to hear their sport's heavily tarnished golden boy read a speech.

"I cannot stress how strongly our board felt that this should be open to all media and also for the opportunity to question Woods," GWAA president Vartan Kupelian said Thursday.

"The position, simply put, is all or none. This is a major story of international scope. To limit the ability of journalists to attend, listen, see and question Woods goes against the grain of everything we believe."

According to the GWAA, Woods' camp initially offered them three spots in the media pool, while another three were given to the Associated Press, Reuters and Bloomberg News Service.

They ultimately upped the ante to six spots for GWAA members, but the board turned them down.

Nineteen board members voted in favor of boycotting the event, while four disagreed and three abstained.

Not abstaining from commenting in the meantime is Woods' fellow PGA Tour pro Ernie Els, who told Golfweek magazine that Tiger scheduling a presser on the same day that the WGC-Accenture Match Play Championship will be heating up in Arizona does a disservice to their sport.

"It's selfish," the South African golfer said. "You can write that. I feel sorry for the sponsor. Mondays are a good day to make statements, not Friday. This takes a lot away from the golf tournament."

Woods' agent, Mark Steinberg, told the mag that they were careful to schedule the conference "well outside the tournament's TV window."

And what do you know? The PGA Tour also said that Woods was actually helping the sport.

"We have tournaments every week," Tour commissioner Tim Finchem said. "I think it's going to be a story in and of itself. A lot of people are going to be watching golf this week to see what the world of golf says about it, my guess is. So that will be a good thing."