Tiger Woods speaks of commitment to family
In interview held days before revelations of promiscuity, ace golfer says having children has been 'the best thing'
Wellington: Tiger Woods spoke of his commitment to his family during an interview screened in New Zealand on Tuesday, but conducted in the days before his car crash and subsequent admission of several infidelities.
Asked in the interview "family first and golf second... always been like that?", Woods replied: "Always. Always."
He goes on to say that having a family — he has two children with wife Elin Nordegren — "has been great, actually, the best thing that ever happened."
The interview was conducted on November 17 — ten days prior to the accident outside his Florida family home which prompted reports of marital strife.
The world's No 1 golfer later admitted to liaisons with other women. Woods says he has applied time management skills learned at Stanford University to his dual roles as a golfer and father and had been more focused as a player since he became a family man.
The interview, conducted in Melbourne where Woods was playing in the Australian Masters, was due to be aired on Christmas Day but New Zealand's Sky Sport brought it forward after the revelations about Woods' private life.
Woods said his basic values had been shaped by his mother Kultida, who was the family disciplinarian.
"You'd think dad, being a Special Forces operator, was the tough guy. No, he was always the softie," Woods said. "My mom was tough."
