Sexy and Stupid

THOUSAND OAKS, Calif. - Tiger Woods said he let his family down with "transgressions" he regrets "with all of my heart," and that he will deal with his personal life behind closed doors.

His statement Wednesday follows a cover story in Us Weekly magazine that reports a Los Angeles cocktail waitress claims she had a 31-month affair with the world's No. 1 golfer.

"I have not been true to my values and the behaviour my family deserves," Woods said on his website . "I am not without faults and I am far short of perfect. I am dealing with my behaviour and personal failings behind closed doors with my family. Those feelings should be shared by us alone."

Woods did not offer details of any alleged relationship.

The cocktail waitress, Jaimee Grubbs, told the magazine she met Woods at a Las Vegas nightclub the week after the 2007 Masters - two months before Woods' wife, Elin, gave birth to their first child. Grubbs claims to have proof in 300 text messages.
About three hours before Woods' statement, the magazine published what it said was a voicemail
provided by Grubbs - that Woods left on her phone on Nov. 24, three days before his middle-of-the-night car crash outside his home in Florida.

"I have let my family down and I regret those transgressions with all of my heart," he said in the statement.

"I will strive to be a better person and the husband and father that my family deserves," Woods said. "For all of those who have supported me over the years, I offer my profound apology."

Woods has been subjected to more media scrutiny over the last week than when he first won the Masters in 1997 and set off the first wave of Tigermania. He has spoken only three times through his website, although this was his longest posting.

"Although I am a well-known person and have made my career as a professional athlete, I have been dismayed to realize the full extent of what tabloid scrutiny really means," Woods said. "For the last week, my family and I have been hounded to expose intimate details of our personal lives."

And he continued to say accounts that physical violence played a role in his Friday morning car crash were "utterly false and malicious."

"Elin has always done more to support our family and shown more grace than anyone could possibly expect," he wrote.

His statement came one day after the Florida Highway Patrol closed its investigation into the accident - without Woods ever speaking to state troopers. He was charged with careless driving, which carries a $164 fine and four points on his driving record.