Golf
Tiger Woods told officers he was looking at phone before crash – police report
Tiger Woods told officers he was looking at his phone and changing the radio station before a car crash that led to his arrest in Florida last Friday, according to a police report.
Woods spent eight hours in jail, having been charged with driving under the influence after his Land Rover rolled over in a collision with a pick-up truck towing a trailer he was attempting to overtake.
The 50-year-old, a 15-time major winner, walked away unhurt and while he passed a breathalyser test for alcohol, Martin County Sheriff John Budensiek said he refused to submit to a urinary test for drugs.
According to an affidavit released on Tuesday, Woods was observed by the investigating officers to be “sweating profusely” while acting “lethargic and slow” with eyes that were “bloodshot and glassy”.
He admitted he “was looking down at his cell phone and changing the radio station” in the moments before the crash and “did not notice the vehicle in front of him had slowed down”.
Woods told the authorities he had not consumed any alcohol but admitted he takes “a few” prescription medications and had done so earlier in the morning while insisting he had not had any illegal drugs.
Woods, who was also charged with property damage and refusal to submit to a lawful test, was observed to be “extremely alert and talkative” and had “hiccups during the entire investigation”.
Multiple sobriety exercises were conducted, where he struggled to follow instructions, leading a deputy to conclude: “How he performed on the exercises and based on my training, knowledge and experience, I believe Woods’ normal faculties were impaired and he was unable to safely operate the motor vehicle”.
During a search of his vehicle, investigators found two white pills, which were identified as hydrocodone, a prescription opioid used to treat severe pain.
The driver of the other vehicle, who had been slowing to turn into a driveway off the two-lane road, was also unhurt.
Woods underwent emergency surgery after suffering multiple leg injuries following a serious car accident in California in February 2021.
The affidavit stated Woods said he had 20 surgeries on his leg as a result of that crash, plus seven operations on his back, while the report also noted Woods was “limping and stumbling”.
Woods was also arrested on suspicion of DUI offences in 2017 after being found asleep at the wheel of his car in Jupiter, Florida. He later pleaded guilty to reckless driving after it emerged he had had five prescription drugs in his system at the time.
In 2009 he crashed his car into a fire hydrant and tree outside his home in an incident that led to a spectacular unravelling of his private life.
This latest accident comes after Woods returned to competitive action for the first time in over a year on the final night of play in the indoor TGL competition on Tuesday.
Woods had said afterwards that he hoped he would be fit enough to play at the Masters next month.
