Like most people (hopefully), I really don’t care about a golfer’s infidelities. I do feel sorry for his wife, just as I felt sorry for Hillary Clinton. But the stupid, selfish, narcissistic, self-destructive behavior of people in their private life is none of my business. I tune in to watch them perform in their sport.
Now that that’s out-of-the-way, let’s talk about Nike’s new ad. I saw the spot on TV and listened to the voice over of their star’s late father and I had only one reaction.
I gave myself about 5 seconds and thought “Wow, what a scumbag.”
Boston.com has a better description calling it a creep show; that’s putting it mildly.
I don’t care about this man in any way and I’m not a golf fan. I do admire anyone who does something really well and Tiger is a phenomenal player. When he is in his zone, you would have to be a fool not to enjoy the performance.
But he’s not someone to look up to and never has been. I don’t want my kids looking at any sports player as a model. I want to look up to people who make a difference in the world for no other reason than they need to fix a problem.
By using the voice of his late father in a Nike commercial, all I get is that this man will sink to any level to maintain his endorsement income. This is pure exploitation to tug on the viewers heart-strings. In interviews I saw people say things like “He’s just like anyone else”.
To paraphrase my late grandfather: that’s pure bull****. I am sure that some people do cheat on their wives. I am also sure that most people don’t. Who honestly thinks that the local neighborhood guy keeps a gal in every port? Nonsense.
I will try not to make any Nike purchases, and I won’t buy anything that is endorsed by that golf player. Anyone who would dig up his own father for a commercial is not someone I can deal with.
