Of course this is simpin'. He doesn't get a pass just because she's his ex-wife and mother of his children.
In fact, he's Simpin' AND trickin'...
Let's be frank here, you really think he would stoop to these tactics if he were the Tiger of old? The Tiger on the fast track to being the first billion dollar athlete? The Tiger that is the number 1 golfer in the world? The Tiger that is regarded so highly and revered for his wholesomeness?
Nahhh.
The fact is, this Ellin chick is symbolic of everything he's lost. By reclaiming her, he achieves (psychologically and symbolically) everything he once commanded-- confidence, respect, earnings, etc.
He can train all he wants, but he will never reclaim his "throne" atop the golf world without her. Why? Because the thing that ails him is not of the body, but rather of the mind, stemming directly from his cheating scandal. By winning her over, convincing her to forgive him, he effectively overcomes that one adversary that bested him--the scandal--and with this, he can reclaim his confidence, the respect he lost, and the earnings he is, perhaps, entitled to.
The guy is a Stanford grad, so I'm sure he is smart enough to have realized her symbolic importance. I don't doubt that genuine love is playing some role in his desire to rekindle the romance that was lost, but I just think that he's doing this largely because of his competitive, male ego, spirit (the driving force behind his success, and the very thing that got him in trouble to begin with).
She is a significant part of this male ego (consider the psychological importance of a trophy wife), so much so that he realizes, knowingly or unknowingly, that his return to greatness is predicated on being able to re-conquer that missing, vital, piece of his masculine dominance-- his model-esque trophy wife.
So yeah, in Tiger's case, he's simpin' and trickin' to reclaim his greatness. Do the negatives of "trickin' and simpin'" outdo the positives of "reclaiming greatness"? Only time will tell, quite honestly...
. For his sake, he better pray that keeps his **** in his pants.
She's an investment that he lost sight of. He's only attempting rectify his mistake.
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I was gonna rep you until I rep you until I read beyond the first paragraph. You put too much stock in having a woman like that. I mean, she was a nanny dude. If anything, she had the come up not him. At his status, she can be replaced if she doesn't accept. It's that simple. Just so you know, Tiger never graduated Stanford, he dropped out to go pro.
I am aware that she was a nanny, and that very fact actually proves my point even more.
I mean really consider the facts presented. Furthermore, just how many multi-millionaires, damn near billionaires, are out there wifing babysitters, without a pre-nup I might add? How many do you honestly know of/have heard of?
I could understand if Ellen was some Scandinavian heiress, or perhaps an undercover genius; or maybe she had tremendous insight into novel, sought after, secretive investment strategies that could prove beneficial to Tiger's growing fortunes?
Nopppeeee. It's none of the above. This chick was just a basic ol' female who babysat, and occasionally modeled, for a living.
So what on earth could possibly drive a man of Tiger's stature to wife a woman like Ellin-- a woman who brings nothing tangible to the table of marriage except babysitting experience? Ohh, also, let's not forget the various accounts which state that Ellin rejected Tiger on multiple occasions before finally acquiescing to his advances. So yeah, why on earth would Tiger throw a ring and half of his fortune at this basic chick?
The answer-- her very specific look.
Blonde hair, blue eyes, fair-skin, Scandinavian-- you don't get any more European than this. She is, arguably, the definition of ideal beauty in eyes of a racialized society where
white is posited at the top of the social totem-pole and
black is posited at the very bottom.
I bring race into the discussion because it matters greatly in Tiger's world. Consider that this is the very same man who denounced and objected to being called "black". Also consider that Tiger was/is the face of sport wherein the players, sponsors, viewers/consumers are a fairly homogenous (white) bunch--racially speaking.
In Tiger's world, a woman like Ellin is a trophy. She "boosted" and legitimized him, further, in the homogenous world he occupied, by simply having a place at the very top of the racialized social totem of society. Her status as a babysitter was irrelevant; the fact that she was poor relative to him was also irrelevant. All that mattered was her "specific" look--blonde hair, blue eyes, fair-skin, Scandinavian, etc. Simply stated, she was yet another, but important, token that endeared him to the racially homogenous culture he was a part of.
He'd have to marry a Halle Barry, or Oprah, or Condoleezza Rice to get a similar "boost" from a black woman. And a basic black babysitter? Forget about it. Said chick wouldn't even factor a 1000 miles away into the equation.
THAT is her (Ellin) "stock".
You're only aware of the superficial if you think that she had the better come-up after marrying him. The man is worth 600M now, which is about 5x more than what he gave her following the divorce. And yet, he's putting at least 250M+ on table just to win her back. What does that tell you about her "value" to him? He putting that much cash up because he KNOWS that with her back at his side, he will easily recoup that money, and more. She's a trophy of value in the world he lives in.
Contrary to what you think, he literally cannot afford to replace her because as stated in my previous post, she's of symbolic value to him. He can very well go and cop a new chick, another blonde-haired-blue-eyed broad from Scandinavia, but doing so wouldn't change the perception of him within the homogenous culture he inhabits. He'll still be viewed as a cheat; he'll still be considered a rogue; worse yet, he'll be used to affirm that horrid stereotype of the insatiable sex addicted black man--the great irony in all of this. if he can, however, convince Ellin to get back with him, remarry him, then it shows that he can be "saved" and grants him a second chance in the eyes of the homogenous culture he so reveres. She is, effectively, and quite literally, his great white hope. That's her "stock"; that's her symbolic value; that's why he cannot simply "replace" her. His confidence, potential earnings, and the respect of his peers and sponsors are tied to her. This is why she's a big deal and why he's putting it all on the table to get her back.
You're definitely not "aware" if you think she's replaceable.
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