The champ with the roving hands is getting downright embarrassing, making it likely now that sponsors will do a Tiger Woods and shop around for other hookups. Nike has got to be rethinking its relationship thanks to Woods making its catchphrase "just do it" cringe-inducing. Sponsors aren't the only ones embarrassed. A January Golf Digest cover story featuring Woods and President Obama with the headline "10 Tips Obama Can Take From Tiger" has given editors insomnia.
Woods earned some $100 million last year, much of it from sponsorship deals. Major sponsors Nike and EA Sports have insisted they're sticking with Woods, but that can quickly change. "Sponsors re-evaluate such relationships every day and they must be worried that this is damaging their brand," a public relationship expert told the Telegraph. Tiger was "supposed be safe. Right now, he's the risk." (More Golf Digest stories.)