In sad news, media outlets out of Florida are reporting that Tiger Woods has been in a very serious car accident. Apparently this happened very early this morning, at 2:25 a.m. Tiger was driving his Cadillac SUV out of his Windermere estate into a fire hydrant, then a neighbor’s tree. He was transported to the Health Central Hospital in Ocoee, Florida under the status “serious condition”. But currently updated reports indicated that Tiger has already been released, and that he was treated for facial lacerations.

The crash is being investigated by Florida officials, but so far the initial reports indicate that alcohol was not a factor. I know, right? That was my first thought: “Drunk a-hole hits fire hydrant, then tree.” However, there are some reports that he might not have been wearing his seat belt, and his air bags did not deploy.

Updates are coming in with regards to the Tiger Woods car crash that occurred earlier Friday morning. Reportedly, Woods, 33, pulled out of his driveway in the Isleworth community when he struck a fire hydrant, and then drove into a tree at his neighbor’s property.

The accident occurred at 2:25 AM Friday morning. Authorities at the Florida Highway Patrol (FHP) cited the injuries as serious. However, Windermere Mayor Gary Bruhn told CNN that the golf superstar was taken to Health Central Hospital, where he was treated for facial lacerations and released.

The FHP has said that the crash is under investigation, and “charges are pending.” It was not clear who could face charges. The accident did not appear to have been alcohol-related, a police statement said.

Tiger Woods was driving his 2009 Cadillac Escalade when the accident occurred. However, the airbags were not deployed in the accident. This means that the car was either traveling less than 33 MPH, or that they were inoperable.

According to his official website, TigerWoods.com, the golfer is in the midst of a two-week break. Woods next scheduled tournament is Dec. 3-6 at the Chevron World Challenge in Thousand Oaks, CA. He has won 93 tournaments, 71 of those on the PGA Tour.

Woods lives in an exclusive subdivision of Isleworth near Orlando, FL with his wife, supermodel Elin Nordegren, and two children. Property records indicate his home is valued at $2.4 million.

[From Huliq]

Okay, the first thing to come to my mind was “drunk”. The second thing was “horrible fight with his wife over reports of his affair that made him angrily leave his property in the middle of the night and drive into a tree.” Is that terrible? It’s just that the National Enquirer’s affair story is the only news about Tiger the past few weeks, so it just popped into my head. I didn’t mean to be horrible about it. It sucks that he was in an accident, and our thoughts are with him and his family.

Update by Celebitchy: Kaiser is most likely right that the accident was caused by a fight between Woods and his wife. The most important thing is that Woods is home and is fine now. TMZ is reporting that the scratches on his face were inflicted by his wife when she confronted him about the alleged affair. He then took off in the car and she followed him, hitting the back of the Escalade with a golf club. Woods hit a fire hydrant and then a tree while his wife was behind him smashing the car. Earlier reports claimed she broke the back window with a golf club trying to help him “escape.”

This story has been burning through the internet for the past 48 hours, slowly but steadily building up some steam. From what little sourcing and back-tracking I’ve done, I think all of the reports steam from the same source: The National Enquirer. The Enquirer is reporting, in this week’s issue, that Tiger Woods is a big, fat cheater. They claim he’s cheating on Elin Norgegren, his wife of six years and mother of his two children (who was a model before they married – just so you know). The Enquirer’s sourcing seems to be exclusively from friends of “the other woman”. The woman is an “events planner” Rachel Uchitel, and in case that name sounds familiar, she is the same woman that Bones star David Boreanaz alleged had an affair with when his wife was pregnant earlier this year (catch up on that story, courtesy of Star Magazine). Good Lord. This Rachel woman gets around, doesn’t she? Allegedly.

The story is gross and dirty and tacky, just like you’d expect. The story is really, really long, so I‘m just going to do this in bullet points:

*Rachel told friends that her liaison with Tiger began in June in New York and has “played out in Los Angeles, Las Vegas and Australia.”

*Friends say Rachel told them she and Tiger stay in touch by phone and sexting.

*”I’m sure Tiger thinks Rachel is staying quiet about their affair, but she’s told lots of people,” says Ashley Samson, a close friend of Rachel’s. Samson also passed a polygraph test. “Rachel told me, ‘I’m having an affair with Tiger Woods. We’re in love!’ She even read me text messages Tiger sent her that said ‘I love you, babe. It’s always going to be just you and me.’”

*More from Samson, who sounds like she has some kind ax to grind: “I’m shocked that Rachel would be so casual about an affair that could break up Tiger’s family. It’s crazy.”

*Rachel was alleged boning David Boreanaz and Tiger around the same time, from June through August, when she broke it off with Boreanaz. Allegedly.

*Another friend of Rachel’s (who also passed a polygraph) says: “They were constantly sexting. Tiger asked what she was wearing, what did she want him to do to her, what did she want to do to him. I reminded Rachel that he was married, and she said ‘Big f-cking deal! It’s Tiger Woods! I don’t care about his wife! We’re in love.’ Her nickname for Tiger is Bear.”

*Rachel traveled to Australia to have a secret tryst with Tiger/Bear while he was playing the Australian Masters. An Enquirer reporter watched Rachel check in to Tiger’s hotel, and watched her elevator go up to the 35th floor, where Tiger had a VIP suite.

*When Rachel was contacted by the Enquirer about the tryst, she first lied about her reasons for being there, and about having another boyfriend, but later said she was in Australia “for business”. However, she says that she and Tiger met on two other occasions.

*Rachel: “I don’t want to be somebody’s number two. I don’t want to be with a married man.”

*Tiger’s lawyer told the Enquirer that Tiger may have met Rachel in a club at some point, but “vehemently denied an affair”.

*Rachel’s friends claim she bitched and whined about the Enquirer tracking her on her Australian tryst, and that she complained “I only got to spend one day with Tiger!”

*Rachel’s friends also claim she’s given up dating other men and is seeing Tiger exclusively. Rachel also claims to her friends that she’s a “one-man woman with Tiger” and that Tiger tells her “I want to go to bed with you every night and wake up to you every morning.” To which Rachel replies: “You can’t – you have a wife and two kids.” Tiger replies: “I’ll fix that!”

*Tiger and Rachel fight because she thinks he’s seeing other women. Not his wife. Rachel also thinks, according to her friends, that Tiger is about to leave his wife for her.

[From The National Enquirer, print edition, December 7 2009]

Now, at first, I was like “this Rachel woman is f-cking delusional, and probably a stalker and a narcissistic self-promoter.” But now that I’ve read the whole thing, with the polygraph-approved comments from her friends, I’m kind of thinking that parts of the story might be true. I think Tiger might be having (or had) an affair with Rachel Uchitel, and that the affair might have been more than just a one night thing. But what I don’t buy is all of the rosy sentiments of “I love you, babe. It’s always going to be just you and me.” Bullsh-t. If he did say that, it was just to get a piece. I doubt he glamorized it, that stuff sounds like it’s all her. Ugh… and I liked Tiger so much. His wife is gorgeous too – and this Rachel woman is rather plain.

Here’s Star Magazine’s photo of Rachel Uchitel when she was allegedly bangin’ David Boreanaz:

Tiger Woods, his wife Elin and his daughter Sam are shown on November 21, Credit: PicApp/Getty.

I had to watch this damn video three times before I realized the small squeaking sound -that no one comments on in real time – was (GASP) a Tiger Fart. That’s right, ladies and gentlemen, Tiger Woods farts! And it’s a pretty cute sound. It’s not like he’s some gassy fart-ripping mofo who ate too much Chinese food (cough cough me cough). The Tiger Fart was subdued, almost classy. And it’s also huge news in the sporting world. Let me say it this way – if you spent your days covering every aspect of golf, for the love of God, wouldn’t a Tiger fart be, like, one the juiciest stories ever?

A Tiger Woods fart is pretty much the only thing Tiger Woods hasn’t done on camera. But the Tiger Woods fart at the end of the Buick Open changed all that. TV cameras follow Tiger Woods endlessly, but they never caught a Tiger Woods fart before. Yet they did that on the 18th hole of the Buick Open, as Tiger Woods was wrapping up an easy victory. However, it was the Tiger Woods fart that took up much of the attention afterward, since people have seen Tiger win countless times before – but had never heard this from him before.

Tiger Woods’ fart came during the 18′th hole, as Woods was in the fairway getting set to wrap up the Buick Open. Woods would win by three shots, and was coasting fairly easily. As such, the most noteworthy thing he did during the final round itself was fart, and get caught doing it by a nearby microphone.

The Tiger Woods fart was heard pretty well on television, though the commentators didn’t have any comment for it – perhaps the first time they had no words or hyperbole for something Tiger Woods did. Woods heard it immediately and laughingly asked “Are you serious?” as he and caddy Steve Williams giggled, as is customary after a fart.

At the very least, the Tiger Woods fart was something that he could afford to laugh at, since he was winning easily. In fact, this whole weekend was a relief for Woods, having rebounded from a terrible missed cut at the British Open.

Tiger Woods can laugh off a fart while he’s winning, but not winning any majors at all in one year would be a different matter.

[From Associated Content]

“Woods heard it immediately and laughingly asked “Are you serious?” as he and caddy Steve Williams giggled, as is customary after a fart.” Oh. My. God. Do these golf people really need to have it explained that’s it’s customary to laugh after someone farts? In some of the videos, you can even see Tiger laughing post-fart, and it actually made me like him more. Ridiculous.

Update by Celebitchy: CBS is denying that Tiger lit one, while refusing to identify the culprit. As James points out below, Tiger lifted his leg while it happened. Of course that may have been just a coincidence.

Every year, Parade reveals its list of top celebrity earners in its “What People Earn” issue. This year, the list includes everyone from Jennifer Aniston ($27 million) to Tiger Woods ($110 million) and John Grisham ($25 million). Check out the full compilation below:

Jennifer Aniston $27 million
Alex Rodriguez $34 million
Kelly Ripa $8 million
Britney Spears $2.25 million
Patrick Drempsey $3.5
Tiger Woods $110 million
John Grisham $25 million
Rod Blagojevich $177,400
Will Ferrell $31 million
Sarah Palin $125,000
Chelsey Sullenberger $100,000
Beyonce $80 million
Taylor Swift $5.5 million
Carolyn Murphy $4.5 million
Jay-Z $82 million
Barbie $3.3 million
Michael Bloomberg $1 million
Tyler Perry $125 million
Danica Patrick $7 million
Rush Limbaugh $38 million
Tina Fey $4.6 million

from [Parade]

Parade doesn’t do a good job of explaining how they came to these numbers; I assume they are 2008 figures, and take into account the salaries the celebrities were supposed to receive directly (that is, no royalties were taken into consideration).

There are some surprises on the list, including Britney Spears’ lowly $2.25 million (though this may be due to her meltdown and absence from the entertainment scene last year). Even Taylor Swift was able to beat out Britney’s earnings. And I know Tyler Perry’s movies do well at the box office, but geez. $125 million is a lot of dough.

And talk about a power couple: Beyonce’s $80 million along with Jay-Z’s $82 million should make them a nice little nest egg when, and if, they decide to retire.

Say what you will about whether or not celebrities deserve the salaries they get; it’s always interesting to be able to compare the salaries of the celebrities themselves.

Photo credit: PRPhotos

Pro golfer Tiger Woods has shared the first photos of his newborn son, Charlie Axel Woods, on his website. Woods is shown kissing ten day old Charlie on the head in one shot. Tiger also is shown posing with his wife, Elin, their other child, daughter Sam, 20 months, and even their dogs. These are very well done professional family portraits. There are even individual baby shots of Charlie that remind me of Anne Geddes’ whimsical photos.

Just 10 days old, Charlie Axel Woods has made his international media debut – with the son of golf champ Tiger Woods appearing on his dad’s Web site.

In all, there are five photographs now published on Golf.com of Charlie and the family, who are all shown, in various stages, kissing the new arrival. Even the family dogs get into the picture.

Charlie was born Feb. 8, which prompted his proud father to post on his Web site: “Both Charlie and Elin are doing great and we want to thank everyone for their sincere best wishes and kind thoughts.”

Sister Sam Alexis was born in 2007 – and, if these new photos are any indication, isn’t shy about showing her love for her new little brother.

Speaking for himself, Sam and wife Elin Nordegren when Charlie arrived, Woods also said, “Elin, Sam and I are very excited for the new baby to arrive, although that’s when the real lack of sleep begins.”

[From People]

I got such a warm and fuzzy impression of this young family from the photos and it looks like they have a lot of love to go around.

Tiger Woods hasn’t been able to golf since he had knee surgery last June. Caddy Steve Williams says that he is most likely a “few weeks” away from returning to the course.

Congratulations to Woods and Elin on their new arrival!

Tiger Woods and his wife Elin have welcomed their second child, a son they’ve named Charlie Axel. Charlie already has a big sister Sam Alexis, born June 2007. Woods had to reject an invitation to particate in the Buick Invitational tournament because Charlie’s birth was imminent. Tiger has released a statement saying that baby Charlie and wife Elin are both doing well.

Tiger Woods is a dad again. The world’s No. 1 golfer and his wife, Elin Nordegren, welcomed a son on Sunday, reports Golf.com. Woods, 33, confirmed the family addition on his website.

The baby’s name is Charlie Axel Woods, said the proud father, adding, “Both Charlie and Elin are doing great and we want to thank everyone for their sincere best wishes and kind thoughts.”

This is the second child for the couple, whose daughter, Sam Alexis, was born in June 2007, the day after Woods placed second in the U.S. Open.

Were it not for the new arrival – and his taking time to recuperate after surgery on his knee – Woods would have been at Torrey Pines, Calif., in the final round of the Buick Invitational tournament, which he’s played in 11 times and won six, according to the San Diego Union-Tribune, which first reported the birth.

But as he announced on the PGA Tour website last week: “A lot depends on the baby, which is due pretty soon. That takes precedence over anything I do golf-wise. But I must admit, I am also excited about returning to competition.”

Woods added: “Elin, Sam and I are very excited for the new baby to arrive, although that’s when the real lack of sleep begins.”

From People Magazine

Congratulations to the family! Elin used to work as a model and as a nanny, which is what she was doing when she met Tiger. She and Tiger seem very happy together, and he’s said before that she was a great support to him when his father passed away. I wonder if they’ll stop at two children now that Tiger has his son – a son that will probably be the next great golfer!

Header image is of Tiger Woods and Elin watching Pete Sampras play Roger Federer Madison Square Garden in on 3/10/08. Credit: UPI/Newscom. Image below is of “Elin Nordegren carrying baby girl Sam as they watch Woods putt on the 18th green during the final round of the US Open at Torrey Pines Golf Course in San Diego on June 15, 2008″ Credit: UPI/Newscom

Golf Channel anchorwoman Kelly Tilghman was suspended a mere two weeks for making an offensive comment about golf great Tiger Woods. She said on air that challengers should “lynch him in a back alley.”

When I first read this I was outraged and thought the woman should be summarily canned. That’s not a slip of the tongue, that’s a lynching reference and Tilghman should be fired, not suspended. Don Imus got canned for calling female basketball players “nappy headed hoes.” He didn’t make a reference to a barbaric practice in which people were killed for the color of their skin. A racist outburst also cost former Seinfeld actor Michael Richards his career.

When you watch the clip though, she’s addressing something someone else said, and it does seem like a dumb ass slip that she should have to live with, but that maybe shouldn’t cost her a career. I don’t know. She’s in the news field, though, she should know to watch what she says:

This makes me upset, but it does seem like a genuine mistake from some idiot. What should happen to her career now? Well she supposedly apologized to Tiger Woods and his PR person said that they didn’t take offense.

Faldo and Tilghman were discussing young players who could challenge the world’s No. 1 player toward the end of Friday’s broadcast at Kapalua when Faldo suggested that “to take Tiger on, maybe they should just gang up for a while.”

“Lynch him in a back alley,” Tilghman replied.

“While we believe that Kelly’s choice of words was inadvertent and that she did not intend them in an offensive manner, the words were hurtful and grossly inappropriate,” Golf Channel said in its statement. “Consequently, we have decided to suspend Kelly for two weeks, effective immediately.”

Woods and Tilghman have known each other 12 years. She was picked to host a club demonstration with Woods in south Florida when he talked about new products from Nike Golf.

Tilghman was helped when Mark Steinberg, Woods’ agent at IMG, said it was a non-issue and considered the matter “case closed.”

“Tiger and Kelly are friends, and Tiger has a great deal of respect for Kelly,” Steinberg said Tuesday night in a statement released by Golf Channel. “Regardless of the choice of words used, we know unequivocally that there was no ill-intent in her comments.”

Tilghman had said in a previous statement she apologized directly to Woods, and the immediate support from Woods’ camp was critical.

[From The Huffington Post]

Last night I finally watched the cartoon The Boondocks online. I know it’s a retired comic strip, but this is the adult cartoon on The Cartoon Network put out by the same creator. In case you’re not familiar with it, two young kids live with their ornery grandfather, and it deals with issues of race, family life, and politics.

It was hysterically funny, but they also use the “N” word constantly and you have to get used to it. When the word is used like that it takes the sting out of it, and it’s called “appropriation,” like when gay people use the “other” F word. There’s a lot of well-deserved debate about how words can be used by one group of people and not another, and I think the issue is intent. Like if you intend to use it to put someone down because of who they are, it shouldn’t be used that way.

This chick Kelly Tilghman didn’t intend to say that Woods should be lynched, she just kind of blurted it out and that’s not what she meant. Maybe a two week suspension is all that’s in order, but it also kind of gives you a chill to read those words and consider what they can really mean.