point, have plenty of reece's pieces on hand. >> erica hill. that's it for us. "larry king live" starting right now. have a good night. >> larry: tonight, tiger woods, confesses, admitting transgressions, personal sins. you know what, his online apology doesn't spell anything out. but clearly, he's in trouble. is his one squeaky clean image tarnished forever? how about this friends, his name, his talent? made of millions, tiger woods, what now next, on "larry king live"! >> larry: we're going to begin, by the way, with two of the best sports writers in the business,

rick riley, the award-winning sports columnist for espn, the magazine. he also hosts espn's "homecoming" with rick riley, a terrific show. and in washington, christine brennan, "usa today" sports columnist and a commentator for espn as well. but, first, tiger woods admits to personal sins and being far short of perfect in a statement posted on his website. here are the comments. i have let my family down and i regret those transgressions with all my heart. i've not been true to my values and the behavior my family deserves. i'm not without fault and i'm far short of perfect. i'm dealing with my behavior and personal failures behind closed doors with my family. those feelings should be shared by us alone. although i'm a well-known person and have made my career as a professional athlete, i'm dismayed to realize the full extent of what tabloid scrutiny really means. for the last week, my family and

i have been hounded to expose intimate details of our personal lives. the stories in particular that physical violence played any role in the car accident are utley false and malicious. elin has always done more to support our family and shown more grace than anyone could possibly expect. no matter how intense the curiosity of public figures can be, there is an important and deep principle at stake which is the right to some simple human measure of privacy. i realize there are some who don't share my view on that, but for me, the virtue of privacy is one that must be protected in matters that are intimate and within one own family. personal sins should not require press releases and problems within a family shouldn't have to mean public confessions. whatever regrets i have about letting my name down have been shared with and felt by us alone. i have given this a lot of reflection and thought that i believe that there is a point at

which i must stick to that principle even though it's difficult. i will strive to be a better person and the husband and father that my family deserves. for all of he's have supported me over the years, i offer my profound apology. rick, what do you think? >> it's staggering. he got burned by "gq" when he was started on tour. the "gq" writer got him stuff wished he has never said. he has shut us down. he's ran a spotless personal life. he's like a hostile murder witness. he gives you nothing. for him to come out and talk about personal failure, he's the most competitive guy i've ever met. if you play pingpong with him, you keep playing with him until he wins. you ski with him, he throws his bowl when he falls. if you golf, you can see him throwing clubs. he's got to win at all times. to come out and say failure, i've let my family down, this has got to be killing him. >> christine, you wrote very

critically about him, what did that stem from? you were rough today? >> well, it's going to be in tomorrow's "usa today," but i guess it's online. yeah, what an apology, huh? the first paragraph, larry, is an apology, the second two paragraphs, he attacks everybody else, and of course, this is a self-induced scandal. tiger woods has no one to blame for this but himself. and i think it's an amazing window, larry, into the psyche of tiger woods, that even as he is, quote/unquote, apologizing, you wonder, and i hope i'm wrong on this, you do wonder if in fact he felt worse about getting caught than he does about cheating on his wife. for those who say let him have his private life. for the many days that the tabloids were going crazy, i was trying to ignore that and go with the fact. picture this, he's always on his website, the family pictures, the beautiful image of him as a family man. well, now, we know that's a

charade. and i think it's fair that a man who asks for the money from all of the endorsements gets and wants you to buy his products and wants you to cheer for him on the golf course, but then he wants to us shut him out completely, i don't know that you can have it both ways in today's society. >> larry: ricky. >> beyond that, this is a guy that runs a school. this is a teaching experience. i thought it was wrong for him to stonewall everything. plus, it's dumb. this is the age of the digital posse. if you say they're not going to get you, they're going to get you. >> larry: is he better off coming forward as -- kobe did, kobe had a criminal charge. would it be better off coming forward publicly, rather than a website? >> i'm not sure he wants to show his face. >> larry: that's not him? >> no, with the cuts and

bruises. remember bobby kennedy's life, he said, if you got a problem, hang a lantern on it. and hang a lantern on it right away. but he didn't do that. he challenged the digital world to come after him, and they're killing him. >> larry: but, christine, didn't you and the rest of the media who covered him for years like him? everybody rooted for him? >> well, as rick said and rick i covered tiger for a long time, we don't really know him. he's kept his privacy very guarded which, by the way, is his right. i'm not saying that's wrong. it's about corporate acquiescence. he does speak out, he spoke out that augusta should have women members. he spoke out. he's maturing and doing things that you would want of a man in his mid-30s. this is a clear step backwards. this is stunning.

when you hear his voice this morning. as i said, i was trying to avoid the tabloids. we weren't sure what was watching. he said/she said, then you hear his voice on that voice mail tape. and, wow. that's pretty bad. >> yeah, that's lesson 101 in flanderring superstar. you never leave a voice mail, i'm surprised a guy that careful would do that, not to say what he did was right. boy, i thought he was easily caught. what did it get sold for, 100 grand? >> larry: you wrote a column this summer complaining about his trant trantrums saying he g everywhere but that. >> yeah, everybody needs someone to disappoint. he's had no one to disappoint lately. if i could hit a ball 350 yards and land it on a pot holder and

people reached to ed out to tou and guys are paying me $100 million maybe i start thinking i'm a superstar, and you start thinking you can get away with anything but you can't. i hope on this day and age. i hope he starts swearing on the court. he's got kids to mimic his every move. it's going to be hard for him to grow, in front of the world now. >> larry: christine, can it go away? >> i think it eventually will go away. unless, i talked to some experts today, larry, the only really bad thing to come is the drifter of drift. if there's more. and hopefully, tiger has dealt with it, and it's done. and only tiger knows, obviously. and if there are other women, what have you. yeah, oh, i think when tiger actually shows up on a golf course, it's going to be huge. i think the ratings will go through the roof. he's not going to lose his sponsors. nike loves this kind of stuff. probably most others do as well.

i think next year's masters, obviously events before then, we'll be watching. we may not think the same of tiger woods ever again, and we may not look at him the same way again, larry, but we will be watching. >> larry: you think he got big ratings before. >> i don't know if he can stay married. tiger's wife, one of her best friends is jasper pare parent 0 vick's wife, she was their nanny. she said i wished she would have used the 9 iron. >> larry: christine, look forward to having you again. i did see it on a blog, whatever it was i saw, the column will be in "usa today" tomorrow? >> that's correct, larry. >> larry: rick will be back later. those of you, tomorrow, read it. those who have experience with a celebrity crisis or two are

here, how would they advise tiger? that's next. so many arthritis pain relievers -- i just want fewer pills and relief that lasts all day. take 2 extra strength tylenol every 4 to 6 hours?!? taking 8 pills a day... and if i take it for 10 days -- that's 80 pills. just 2 aleve can last all day. perfect. choose aleve and you can be taking four times... fewer pills than extra strength tylenol. just 2 aleve have the strength to relieve arthritis pain all day.

mr. woods is at fault in the crash. insufficient evidence issuing a uniform traffic citation, there are no claims of domestic violence by any individual.

>> larry: tiger's, by the way, squeaky clean image may be kaput, but so much, the sponsors stick wig him. nike supports tiger and his family, our relationship remains unchanged. gatorade says, tiger and his family have our support as they work through their private matter, our partnership continues. we now welcome pat o'brien, has known tiger for many years, interviews him. howard bragman. mark gar row goes. pat o'brien, you know him, you have interviewed him. how surprised were you? >> i was surprised, larry, i think in this day and age,

nobody goes undefeated. and that includes tiger woods, i think he's a victim of his own image. the one that he set up for himself. i'm a little more surprised that it's getting as much or more coverage than the 30,000 men and women we're sending to bar from the speech of obama the other night. you know what which he pointed out in the statement that was five days later, he's human. these things happen. >> larry: was it too late, howard? >> it was too late. it was the second statement. and i think there's a better way to do it than another statement. i think people wanted to hear tiger. people like tiger. they want to hear him -- >> larry: he should have done what, radio? >> he should have called you literally on the air. somebody he was comfortable. he didn't have to do the face. he could have said i'm home healing, my doctor doesn't want me to leave but i want people to know. >> larry: it would have helped a

lot. >> absolutely. >> larry: david, what would you advise? >> given what we know how, sigh agree with larry that it was a little too late. the statement that he released today should have been released immediately after the accident. but you have to recognize, and good people do bad things. tiger still is an extraordinary talent, and he is still a young man who is remarkably poised. and these are the things that he should embrace and build upon as he rebuilds his image and reearns the trust of the public. >> larry: and he doesn't need an attorney, does he? >> he doesn't need an attorney. it might have been a millisecond too late, it doesn't matter. this guy's got a reservoir. ese going to get through it. i'm with pat, it never ceases to amaze me the preoccupation with the rich and the powerful.

it's mind-boggling to me. it's not knew. it happens all the time. anybody who doesn't think this goes on constantly and consistent is naive. like i said before, i mean, in europe, they kind of laugh at how silly this is. >> but it's always gone on, hasn't it? it's just more exposure? >> there's more exposure than it ever was, i suppose. and the thing that also, i think, is somewhat humorous is this idea that somehow you're going to wait it out and that nobody's going to know. obviously, on the way over here on the radio, they were playing constantly that voice mail message of his. so obviously, he knew that he apparently the other person. you knew that was going to come out. you knew that was something he was going to have to deal with. like i said, he's got a reservoir if somebody has come through that. >> larry: will tiger's admitted

transgressions hurt his career? that's tonight's question on the blog. give us your votes, go to cnn.com/larryki cnn.com/larryking, tell us what you think. back in 60 seconds. here, let me get my cellular out - call ya a wrecker. ...oh shoot...i got no phone ...cuz i'm a pothole...so....k, bye! anncr: accidents are bad. anncr: but geico's good. with emergency road service. ding! welcome to idaho where the world's best potatoes come from. some people say it's the rich volcanic soil that makes our potatoes so special or maybe the pure water. whatever it is, idaho potatoes are a delicious part of a healthy diet. with zero fat or cholestrol and only 110 calories and they taste great. but remember not all potatoes come from idaho. so always look for the grown in idaho seal.

genuine idaho potatoes, from the best earth on earth. >> larry: there are, of course, others who have made mistakes in their personal lives. take a look at some of them and how they explained it. >> i have had sex with women who work for me on this show. now, my response to that is, yes, i have. >> the bottom line is this, i've been unfaith to my wife. it began very innocently as i suspect many of these things do. >> it was painful for her, but she responded exactly the kind of woman she is. she forgave me. >> disgusted at for making a mistake of adultery. >> i've acted in a way that

violates my obligations to my family, and that violates my or any sense of right or wrong. >> indeed i did have a relationship with miss lewinsky that was not appropriate. in fact, it was wrong. >> larry: except for kobe, all of those were on the public trust. pat, how do they -- and where do they go from here? >> well, winston churchill said, when you're walking through hell, keep walking. that's what they got to do. kobe is doing fine. martha stewart was in jail, and she's doing find. a-rod is doing fine. some of the reporters and sportscasters that talk about kobe have gone through personal battles, and they're doing fine. you know, i think in time this goes away. you got to live with the internet, though. can you imagine in the internet was around for the athletes we grew up watching. >> larry: babe ruth?

>> well, not babe ruth, but the demagazine yos. >> things that are private, e-mail, everybody is taking a picture. and there should be a lesson for or celebrities here. >> larry: so what, if anything, should tiger woods do now? some answers. we'll ask. i'm told she's in the garden picking herbs. she is so cute. okay i'll hold. she's holding. wha? (announcer) progresso. you gotta taste this soup. ♪ [ male announcer ] the day you give someone a lexus is just the first of many memories you'll make with it. [ children scream ] ♪ [ laughs ] the lexus december to remember sales event, with some of the best values of the year. special lease offers now available

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the accident, the golfer is being issued a careless driving citation. >> and what really caused it. >> a scandal has erupted. as one scandal ends, another begins. >> larry: all right, david cornwell, this is your bailiwick. you're sitting with tiger, what's your advice? >> first, you recognize that you are going through a personal tragedy. and it's impossible to separate the personal from the professional. primarily because the public expects authenticity. they want to see authentic remorse. he doesn't get a mulligan on this. so he has to be able to go through the process of dealing with this terrible exposure about his marriage coming apart, in a way that enables him also to present himself to the public in an authentically remorseful way to begin to rebuild his

brand which is his character, focus, discipline, all the things that make tiger woods tiger woods. i happen to think we may see him on this show, expressing to the public, through you, how sorry he is for what has happened, how sorry he is for not only letting his family down but for letting the people that support him down. >> larry: are you saying, david, that a web message isn't enough? >> i really don't think it is. my sense is, the cuts on his face is something he's not ready to explain, or maybe he can't explain. it's unlikely it happened in an auto accident without the air bag deploying. i'm certain it's about the cuts on his face that he hasn't been seen publicly. >> larry: mark? >> you know what i think, i think he's hoping an waiting over there that some other celebrity commits a felony and does something incredibly stupid and it shifts.

>> larry: there aren't many people bigger than him. it doesn't have to be bigger, it just has to be crazier. and it happens with such frequency, and the number of things that you can't squelch if they get out there that should shift the focus. who knows. i remember how many times we've gone through various scandals here. and then we think, is this ever going to end, boom, the next day it's something else. >> larry: pat, if there is something else, should he come out with it? >> i think if he has the right hand, to sit down with him, is there anything else? you've got to have that conversation right away? is there anything else, let's get in front of it this time. so i think probably we might see a couple more women here and there, i think he's taken care of that with "transgressions." you know. >> he needs to define his transgressions. what david said is right. he needs to come to a place like this, where he's going to get a fair hearing, put himself out

there, and be sincere and remorseful. what i have to teach my clients there's a secret ingredient and that's called time. over time, we forgive an awful lot of things. >> larry: do you teach remorse? do you guys teach it? >> teach him how to show it. >> larry: the old george burns thing, the secret of sincerity, if you can fake it, you got it made. >> you know what, it does make them stop, and then they go wait. i'll tell you a true story. michael vick on friday. i wasn't involved with dogfig dogfighting, i had nothing to do with it. on monday, he apologized, he found jesus on monday. >> i'll tell you one thing, i think a lot of people are looking at their pda and pushing delete button. >> i say give me your phone records. i want to know it immediately because i want to know what's

going to pop up. >> larry: does it always come out, david? >> it certainly seems that way, that's why you do have a tough conversation with your client very early in the process. and i wonder what happened over the weekend with tiger and his advisers, whether he told them everything or whether they made the difficult point to him, if there's anything out there, we need to know about it and deal with it. certainly, knowing what we know today, he was too late with this statement. and, yes, whatever is out there, it always seems to come out. pat, if it's on their pda, it's too late, because it's on somebody else's now, too. >> larry: we'll take a break and come back with more. tiger, of course, has an open invitation to appear on this show. he's been here before. we'll be right back. ÷÷÷÷÷÷

>> larry: pat o'brien, you've gone through personal tribulations that got into the press. >> right. >> larry: any advice in that area? going through it, what's it like? >> it's no fun. it's embarrassing, it's humiliating, really the apology to your family that you hurt. you got to own up to it, the admit, apologize and advance. i'm sitting two feet from larry king, so it doesn't hurt me all that much. you got to get in front of it.

i didn't really do anything wrong. it was just embarrassing to me. in this day and age, it's got to come out. >> larry: do you need the wife to help now, howard? >> absolutely. >> larry: is she paramount? >> yeah, but i don't think she's coming out tomorrow with him. i think they have to stabilize the relationship. he's got a lot of time what we call the catharsis interview. >> larry: mark, does she have to play a part in this? >> i don't think so. i go back to the fact that this guy is an icon, number one. his core audience, number one are golfers, you can get a higher adultery level than golfers? it's not like this is going to hurt him. >> larry: now, wait a minute, you're condemning everybody out there golfing? >> i'm not condemning them. >> larry: female golfers, too?

>> they've got a lot of time. >> larry: long tour? >> exactly right. >> the golf community isn't going to say anything other than the guy's human. >> but i want to say one thing, you're right about him being an icon, even listening to the sports people talking about the club throwing, all of the stuff coming up, it's banished him. it's never going to be the same. it doesn't say joe schmow in is the lead, it says tiger woods is two strokes off. >> larry: with the tournament, they said he's taking two months off. february, hawaii, what's that going to be like, david? >> i thought it was going to be at torrey pines at the end of the january. but wherever it is, it's going to be a zoo. >> larry: you may be right. it may be torrey pines. >> he better be well prepared. this is not going to be a circumstance where he's going to stay in the clubhouse and issue statements through the website

so he has to be well prepared. and frankly, i think it would be smart for him to make himself available before the golf tournament to get this out of the way because he doesn't want this distraction hanging over him for the next two months. as soon as his face is cleared up, i would advise him to find a way to get out into the public eye and address this. and i'm not sure -- >> larry: on "larry king live," right? >> i think it's a great place to start. but i'm not sure he needs to have his wife standing next to him because that's such a cliche. and as i mentioned earlier, sincerity and auth thenticity i what's important in rebuilding his sponsorships, and if he trots out with his woman standing by her man, i think the public will see that and it won't end it, it will prolong it. >> larry: pat, you've covered sports? how do you think he'll play? how well will he play?

>> well, he's the best that ever played, in my opinion. he's got nerves of steel. he's going to have to try to. the fans are going to try to get in his head. even fans of his. you've got fans that will scream out anything. also, you know, i think we got to let up on this a little bit because there's a personal side to this. he's got a family, he's got kids, under one roof, maybe watching us now. that's a sad, sad story. i think it's time to let them heal, whether we will let them do that, i don't know. >> larry: thank you, mark, thank you david, pat. how will tiger woods handle this with the kids? damage control, next. and use the free savings calculator. we learned that changing your medicare part d plan could save an average of $612. woman: we just entered my prescriptions, and it compared plans for us. it was easy to find the right plan for the prescriptions i need. your cvs pharmacist can help, too. come in today, or go to cvs.com before december 31st

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>> larry: howard bragman remains, and we're joined by dr. robi ludwig, the psycho therapist, you're the father of a young boy, 11 or 12 years old. he comes over here. tiger is his hero, and his picture it on the wall, what do you say to him? >> i think you can admire someone for wonderful skills an an athlete. it doesn't mean they're amazing in all the various areas of their life. i think that's the mistake that we often give to some of these

famous people. we idolize them. we idealize them, and make them perfect when they're not. >> larry: do you say that to a child? >> you might. i mean, if a scandal comes out, you can explain to a child, listen, because somebody is highly developed in one area, doesn't make them perfect and that's the way people are. i think that would be a very valuable lesson. >> larry: how does the wife cope with this? how does the wife -- you've advised us all the time, how does the wife cope with this? >> you really have to ask the wife or she needs to ask herself, what does she want at this point. it's probably too soon to really know. i think she needs to feel her hurt and pain privately. probably only talk to close people that she trusts and decide, you know, is she willing to be in a relationship that's very high-profile where this happened. she is married to a famous guy where many women are going to

throw themselves at him, is that something that she can deal with. can she live with him knowing that he's imperfect, that he made a mistake, but that they go towards their marriage in a new direction. >> larry: do you have to advise clients, howard, on not just public but how they deal with their marriage? >> absolutely, when you do crisis pr, you have to be part publicist and part therapist. what you have to teach them, there are times where you say, forget what the public thinks, what's important to you and your loved ones and your family. ultimately, if you can make them happy, you either forget what the public is, or you make the public accept that. >> larry: well said. how does she deal, robi, with public ridicule. she goes to the market? >> i think she ignores it. i think you have to put on your game face. she probably has close trusted people, hopefully, that she can talk to.

but i think what she says is very little. less is more in this case. she doesn't need to explain anything to the public. it's really none of their business. all she should say is something like this. you know, i love my husband, and, you know, we are going through a tough time privately. and i appreciate you respecting my privacy. something along those lines, really. but not fueling the fire at all. and she doesn't need to answer to the public. and the public ultimately will feed into however it is that they deal with it. if they come through this strongly, then people will respect their relationship. >> larry: assuming that it was her that acted violently toward him, assuming that, what's the effect on his public image based on that? >> well, the question is, are we going to find out that truth? my experience is that -- >> larry: everybody will assume. >> my experience is, the truth

will come out, that in this transparent world, we're going to do it. and i think they have to deal with it together, you know, like robi just talked about, like you just asked me, they have to come to their own understanding, and that's not something, they're in the middle of this thing. it's like the hurricane has just blown their house away. you have to gather your thoughts. gather your possessions. make your marriage work for yourselves. get some counseling and get some help, and then come out together with a unified front. >> larry: do you understand, robi, when a spouse is violent when learning about something like this? >> well, there will be many women and men who will be highly reactive when they find out a spouse is cheating on them. it's a feeling of rejection. your image of the partner is completely shattered. and there's the feeling why am i not good enough? why am i not enough in order to hold your attention?

when really it may have absolutely nothing to do with the quality of one's marriage. i meaner that is what is so shocking to a lot of people. people cheat for all kinds of reasons, especially high-powered famous men. you know, they have a personality structure that might make them more vulnerable to cheating. they like the excitement, they're alpha males, they have women throwing themselves at them. also, there's a feeling of grandocity, i'm schedule, i can get away with things that others can't. i believe probably what needs to happen, she needs to understand a lot more about the dynamics of the situation and find a way to come to terms with it. the initial reaction is probably like "i want to kill him." >> larry: thanks, dr. ludwig, as always. howard, always good calling on you, howard bragman, dr. robi ludwig. the crash cost tiger $164 in fines. what about his image. the ability to make even more

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>> larry: david cornwell returns the sports attorney and president of vmp cornwell in atlanta. johning us is johnny deutsche, and rick riley is wack, the award-winning sports writer and columnist for espn and host of "homecoming with rick riley." tiger woods was here in 1988, before he was married. and he spoke about when how difficult it is to be rich and famous? do you want to be married? >> do i want to? no. it will happen. >> larry: do you life as a single man? >> life is good right now. eventually, i'm ready. >> larry: is it hard to date a lot? when you're four days here, gone every there, back to another

city? >> it's very difficult to be with somebody. to me, i think i'll find somebody through a friend of a friend. >> larry: now, we pick it up now, it's kind of sad. as we mentioned earlier, tiger's sponsors are sticking by him. we've got two more statements from ea sports, our strong relationship with tiger for more than a decade remains unchanged. we respect tiger's privacy. we wish him a fast recovery and look forward to seeing him back on the golf course. and from the gillette razor folks, tiger woods has been part of the gillette champions program since 2007. at this time, we are not making any changes to our existing marketing programs. they're the only one, rick, that might have a little hedge here "at this time." >> yeah, because you don't know what's coming. we've had a blowout, might be more. >> larry: donny, do you have any advice? >> first of all, anybody who is

worried about tiger's $100 million a year should stop worrying. let's look at athletes, ray lewis charged with murder. he didn't lose endorsement. kobe bryant charged with rape. here's a guy that has done what half of men in america has done, it's not right, but it is not a crime. i'm going to take it one step further, i had a driver take me to the airport, when this broke, he said, look at tiger, just like all the guys i know. to a guy like this who is two-dimensional, it lets him more human and relatable. at some point, he will come forward in person and do the proper mea culpa. he's a smart guy. it makes him a more responsive human being. i'm going to go on the limb and say it makes him more endorsing. >> larry: before david comment's. >> let me preface it, not necessarily for a certain kind of female product, but in this

world, guys, come on, this is a nonevent anymore. it really is. >> whoa, first of all, ask kobe how many endorsements he lost. he lost everything. he got some back. you don't see him on the commercials. on sprite. ray lewis didn't have much. lost it all. and kobe -- >> pizza hut came back. >> i'm not saying tiger's going to lose a bunch. i think he will lose some. but i don't think this makes him in any way more appealing. i think it makes him as jesper parnevik said, the guy who set him up with his wife, jesper said, we thought he was a better guy than this. >> i said it makes him more relatable to the average human being. once again, guys. this is a human being, i don't think any smart sponsors aren't going to say this guy in a smart golf player. >> larry: we'll be back. don't go away.

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anderson cooper standing by to host "ac 360" at the top of the hour. what's up tonight, anderson? >> on the program tonight, the obama administration selling the president's plan for u.s. troops in afghanistan on capitol hill, tough questions for hillary clinton and others. tonight, my interview with general david petraeus on the strategy, whether it's really nation building and what the new strategy entails. many of the troops heading to afghanistan will be sent to kandahar province. we'll show you what like is like in the war zone. new details about the man accused of killing four cops. warning signs missed in washington state and arkansas. why was this man out on the streets? why was he out on bail?

at one point, mike huckabee gave him clemency. those stores and more tonight on "360." >> larry: that's at 10:00 eastern, 7:00 pacific with anderson cooper. david cornwell, what do you make of donnie's comments that it makes him like every man? >> i disagree. there are really three audiences here that tiger has to deal with. one is the personal, his family and friends and people that are part of his personal life and he's let some down and they're going to side with his wife and others will support him. the other are his sponsors. i don't think they're issuing these statements because they don't think there's a problem with adultery, but there's no basis to terminate the agreement. and then the third is the public in this role model status. my father was a surgeon and once told me that it's okay if other people think you're god, but you're in trouble if you start

believing it. a role model is not a super human icon. it is a person that has all the qualities and blemishes of being a human. tiger is now going to learn that process. and his success in rebuilding his reputation is going to be able to deal with his own blemishes in a way that's sincere and bring the public back to him. >> david, you're contradicting yourself. the very thing that you're saying the very reason that it's going to make him more of a human being. the reason the advertisers are putting the statements out is because this guy is a billion-dollar brand. and he -- >> i didn't contradict myself, maybe you didn't understand. i did say, in fact, that this represents how human he is. >> which makes him more appealing. >> but i disagree with you that they are just kind of dealing with adultery as being the equivalent of jaywalking. >> i didn't say that.

i said that this transgression makes him more appealing -- >> larry: hold it, let's rick get a word in. we have three guests. >> i think the reason they're not bailing on this guy is he's a killer. he's the greatest golfer i've ever seen. he has the most iron will of any athlete i've ever covered. he's going to come back from this. he will get determined and be better than ever. he spends six hours on the range now, he'll spend ten now. he'll try to prove it with his golf. >> larry: but if he comes back, he wins, he's back in the fold. >> go ahead. >> imagine now on the 18th, it's even more of a heroic story. look what tiger came back from again. once again, what he did is wrong, but in the annals of what we watch with human behavior --

>> now, but birdies don't justify womanizing. but he will come back and make you forget what he did to his wife and kids. that's how it works in sports. >> larry: we'll be back with more right after this. me. we have oil on our shores. natural gas can be a part of the solution. i think we need to work on wind resources. they ought to be carefully mapping every conceivable alternative. there is an endless opportunity right here.

>> larry: no surprise that the late night comics are weighing in on what impact tiger's transgressions may have on his billion-dollar brand. take a look. >> tiger has not spoken to reporters. he said it's a personal and private matter between him, his wife and their billion dollars and they're going to keep it that way. but when an athlete gets in a mess this way, you wonder how it

might affect his endorsement deals. so far, gatorade, nike and gillette are standing by him and reiterated their support. >> on behalf of nike, we support tiger woods. >> and on behalf of gilette, we support our client and hope to see him back on the court. >> yahoo! yeah, tiger! >> so gatorade supports tiger, too. >> larry: let's take a call. ft. myers, hello. >> caller: larry, great show. i would like to ask your panel if they think that the advertisers like nike and gillette and music mix usa will all be negatively affected by supporting tiger. >> larry: that's a good question. will they be hurt by supporting him? >> no, hasn't gone far enough yet. but if it gets worse, maybe a

little. >> larry: david? >> i don't think so. maybe some women's groups may come out against him, but i don't think there will be a substantial impact from the purchasers of the products he endorses. >> larry: john, that's your business, though. >> to david's point -- >> larry: do you think people will buy less gillette razors? >> no, the ceos will have to deal with letters from women's groups and stuff that say i'm not going to buy your product, but in reality it will have no effect. >> larry: chicago, hello. hello? >> caller: hi, hello. two-part question for the panel. why are americans so fascinated by celebrity sex scandals? christine brennan criticized tiger's statement, but isn't tiger correct that he's dealing with a personal, private matter?

>> larry: technically, what is it our business? >> i think it is because, a, he wants $100 million a year in endorsements, so we got to buy into the fact that this is a good guy. he pitches them on, hey, i'm a good family guy. he runs a school. we're supposed to believe that he's a terrific guy and he messed up here. >> larry: david, if gillette has a commercial scheduled to run tomorrow, do they run it with tiger shaving? >> absolutely. and i disagree with the premise that because tiger or any other athlete has unique and extraordinary athletic prowess they give up their right to privacy. this is a private story that has been exploded into the public airwaves because we're fixated with scandal. and at some point here's hoping america gets sal