San Martin (AP)—A strange year for Tiger Woods took another
bizarre twist Sunday when a fan was arrested for running toward the seventh
green at CordeValle and tossing a hot dog in Woods’ direction.
The bun barely reached the green. The hot dog landed on the putting surface.
The 31-year-old man, whose name wasn’t released, dropped to the ground to be
arrested as Santa Clara sheriff’s deputies converged on him. Woods backed off
his birdie putt, then quickly resumed play.
Even as he returned last year from a sex scandal, and the occasional fan
would should heckle him, Woods never had a fan duck under the ropes and approach
him.
“Some guy just came running on the green, and he had a hot dog, and
evidently … I don’t know how he tried to throw it, but I was kind of focusing
on my putt when he started yelling,” said Woods, who didn’t seem bothered by it
all. “Next thing I know, he laid on the ground, and looked like he wanted to be
arrested because he … put his hands behind his back and turned his head.”
Sgt. Jose Cardoza said the man was arrested for disturbing the peace and
removed from the property. Because it was a misdemeanor, Cardoza said the man
would not be taken to jail and his name not disclosed. Cardoza said only that he
was from Santa Rosa.
“He was very cooperative,” Cardoza said. “They said, ‘Why did you do
this?’ He just shook his head in guilt or remorse. He didn’t give a reason why
he did it.”
Cardoza said the man claims he wasn’t throwing the hot dog at Woods, rather
tossing it in the air. He said the man acknowledged having a drink earlier in
the day, that the man was not drunk.
Arjun Atwal, who played with Woods, said he was concerned for a moment at
the sight of a fan yelling out Woods’ name and approaching the green.
“They could have shot him,” Atwal said. “The cops could have thought it
was something else.”
It was high drama, albeit briefly, in an otherwise solid round of 3-under 68
for Woods. In his first tournament in seven weeks, he finished with three
straight rounds of 68 to tie for 30th, 10 shots behind, at 7-under 277. It was
the first time Woods had three straight rounds in the 60s on the PGA Tour since
the Deutsche Bank Championship last year.
Still, the hot dog incident stole the show.