Tiger Woods’ arrest on DUI-related charges has prompted debate over whether the champion golfer should face a suspension.
Woods’ Friday crash is the fourth major car incident for the professional golfer since 2009. In 2017, he was found driving under the influence of multiple prescription drugs and asleep in his car, stopped in the road. He said it was due to a reaction to the pills.
“I don’t like sugar-coating things. And the way I look at it, there’s got to be some sort of punishment or withdrawal or some sort of a suspension from the game,” Mark Lye, a former PGA golfer, said Saturday on “Fox & Friends Weekend.”
Woods was taken into custody in Jupiter Island, Florida, where police said he was driving at a “high rate of speed” when he clipped another car, causing his vehicle to roll over. Authorities said he registered a 0.00 on a breathalyzer, ruling out alcohol impairment, but refused a urine test and was charged with DUI and property damage.
“I’m just wondering where that discipline that he’s learned to convey on the golf course is [going to] take hold in his personal life. Obviously, he’s got demons going on,” Lye said.
Lye called for “accountability” for Woods and questioned whether it is time for a stricter suspension from the game. Lye noted that contracts for professional golfers often include a “morals clause” and warned Woods could face further consequences if no action is taken.
Lye isn’t alone in his concern for Woods and those around him, however. Doug Bell, a PGA Tour announcer, said he’s thankful no one was hurt.
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“It’s troublesome to see what happened yesterday. It is a pattern that has developed,” Bell said.
“Let’s hope this leads to something positive for one of the great athletes and figures in this world that we’ve seen in a long, long time,” he added.
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Bell suggested Woods take some time away from golf as a productive next step in recovery.
“He’s dealing with something that we don’t know what’s going on inside his head, the pain that he’s in from all the surgeries,” Bell said, adding that stepping away from the game “might be the best thing.”
Woods was released from jail Friday night. In a mugshot released hours after his arrest, his eyes appeared red.
President Donald Trump weighed in on the arrest of his “very close friend,” noting the star athlete has had some “difficulty.”
Woods’ team did not immediately respond to a request for comment from Fox News Digital.
