"You embarrassed your daughter"- Fans react to BTS of Tiger Woods' days as tournament host at the Genesis Invitational
The prestigious Genesis Invitational's 97th round was hosted by Tiger Woods at the Riviera Country Clubβs golf course on February 16-19, 2023. There, he had also participated and finished off the final round on February 16, tying in 45th place.
The tournament had its fair share of awe-inspired moments and contention throughout its duration. One notable instance is the prank played by Woods on fellow golfer Justin Thomas. The five-time Masters champion placed a tampon in Thomas' hand after their game. Upon realizing that he was handed a tampon, Thomas immediately tossed it to the ground.
Tiger Woods faces backlash for his time as the Genesis Invitational's host
Woods was subjected to negative responses from fans and critics over his joke. Critics claim that he insinuated that Thomas was 'playing like a girl' when he handed him a tampon. They felt that the golfing legend's behavior was inappropriate being the host of the tournament, in addition to reckoning that he was being insensitive as he has a daughter of his own.
One user tweeted:
"You embarrassed your daughter. Bad enough that sheβll have to hear about the tabloids. Grow up."
Another tweet read:
"You can't buy maturity, emotional intelligence, or respect for others. Or class!"
Follow @tigerwoods through his days as tournament host of The Genesis Invitational https://t.co/eXBTQS1DUa
However, several female golfers did step up to defend the golfer and declared that they were not offended by his prank. Additionally, the ambivalent response also had fans supporting him, stating that they found the joke comical whilst others praised his performance in the tournament.
Female golfers have spoken and we are NOT offended by @TigerWoods giving @JustinThomas34 a tampon. Itβs funny, get over it! ππ
#tampongate #golf #tigerwoods #justinthomas https://t.co/2qzfukupgd
One of his fans tweeted:
"the tampon was hilarious!! please never bend to the nazi cancel culture"
Whilst another praised Woods by writing:
"Super proud of you finishing 4 complete rounds and finishing in the -red ... kudos to the Goat !"
Paige Spiranac, a professional golfer turned influencer, wrote:
"If anyone tries to cancel Tiger over this we riot. It's funny."
Woods informed reporters on February 17, 2023 that he did not mean to offend anyone via the joke and apologized for the same.
βIf I offended anybody, it was not the case, it was just friends having fun. As I said, if I offended anybody in any way, shape or form, Iβm sorry. It was not intended to be that way. It was just we play pranks on one another all the time and virally I think this did not come across that way, but between us it was β itβs different,β said Tiger.