Annika Comments On Tiger

Annika Sorenstam and Tiger Woods go way back. They shared a decade of being the dominant golfer of their respective gender, and partnered up and were pitted against each other in made-for-TV coed golf matches such as the Battle at Bighorn, Tavistock Cup and Merrill Lynch Skins Game several times. A friendly rivalry over who was racking up the most tour wins and majors led to the development of an off-course friendship, as did the fact that they're represented by the same agent, IMG's Mark Steinberg. Both players live in Orlando, and Woods's wife Elin grew up an hour away from where Sorenstam grew up outside Stockholm, Sweden, which has brought them closer in recent years. Even though her husband couldn't make it, a nine-months-pregnant Elin attended Sorenstam's wedding last January.   Â

 [#image: /photos/55ad91c7add713143b43146c]|||GDWannikatiger2.jpg|||(Photo by Streeter Lecka, Getty Images)

With that in mind (especially the shared-agent part), and considering Sorenstam's tendency to shy away from controversy, it's interesting to read the statement she put up on her blog over the weekend concerning Tiger's admission of infidelity:

"Like most people, I have been following the stories about Tiger that have unfolded the last couple weeks. I have chosen not to address the issue publicly because he and Elin are both friends of mine.  However, with the most recent developments and an increased number of requests from the media for a comment, this is all I have to say.

I am disappointed in Tiger's actions and I feel very sorry for Elin and the children. I wish them all the best as they try to work through this privately as a family."

In addition to her formal statement, Sorenstam also gave the AP the following quote:

"It's tragic. I think this whole thing is tragic. I am in touch with his wife Elin Nordegren now and then. Me and my husband Mike have been out dining with Elin and Tiger on a few occasions. Perhaps it won't happen as often now."Â

--Stina Sternberg