By Simon Liang
Daily Titan Asst. Sports Editor

Golfer Tiger Woods was the highest paid professional athlete in 2008. Photo Courtesy MCT.

Time to bring out a magnifying glass on the life of Tiger Woods.

Throughout his 13-year professional golf career, he has been a rare hybrid of superstar athlete and squeaky clean citizen.

There are no sexual assaults (i.e. Mike Tyson), illegal activities (i.e. Michael Vick) or illegitimate children with women he met on the road (i.e. Shawn Kemp, Calvin Murphy and Travis Henry).

So when word broke out about him being involved in a one-car accident when he struck a fire hydrant and hit a neighbor’s tree, it made headlines.

Curiosity ran through the minds of many, but there were no sides of the story, just the facts.

When I first heard about the incident, I was in shock because you never hear any breaking news about Tiger unless it’s on the golf course.

My first reaction to the developing story was that it was either alcohol-related or he was sneaking out of the house at 2:25 a.m. to go see his mistress.

Pretty reasonable assumptions I must say. But until I heard all the facts, I was not going to make any assumptions.

Finally, days later, Tiger gave his side of the story.

My assumptions were wrong, but there was still a trail of mystery that left much more to be desired.

According to a statement on his Web site, Woods said, “This situation is my fault, and it’s obviously embarrassing to my family and me. I’m human, and I’m not perfect. I will certainly make sure this doesn’t happen again.”

Perhaps we have all been blind-sighted by Tiger’s supernatural abilities on the golf course that we forgot that he is indeed, human.

Woods goes on to say, “The only person responsible for the accident is me. My wife, Elin, acted courageously when she saw I was hurt and in trouble. She was the first person to help me. Any other assertion is absolutely false.”

Rumors of infidelity swirled around Woods two days before the accident when a National Enquirer story alleged that he had been seeing a New York night club hostess

Maybe that led to a fight between him and his wife.

However, many questions remain unanswered.

Did she strike him with a golf club?

Why were both rear windows of his vehicle smashed?

Why was he backing out of his driveway so early in the morning?

Still, many questions linger about the man who has inspired and captivated millions of fans worldwide with his golf abilities.

His statement did not remove the interest of many because there were still questions that needed answers.

While Tiger has lived a relatively private life outside of golf, this is not the time to be in hiding.

The truth will prevail in this situation, whether Elin, Tiger or his fans like it or not.

Woods and his lawyer have already turned down the Florida Highway Patrol three times for a meeting.

He even named his yacht “Privacy.” Wow, talk about being straightforward.

I understand that he likes his privacy, but in cases like this where there is a whole other story to be had, this is not a time to be silent.

Tiger needs to come clean for his friends and family, but most importantly, his fans.

The truth will ultimately set him free.

Like he said, no one is flawless, but it is time for Tiger to be a man and live up to his mistakes.

Will we ever know what exactly happened that night? The world will just have to play the waiting game.