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It appears that Tiger Woods’ wife is not the only person who has a bone to pick with him. Tiger’s former caddy, Steve Williams, is planning to write a tell-all book about his life with Woods; and some expect that it’s not going to be pretty.

After serving by Tiger’s side for 12 years, Williams was fired recently, and doesn’t appear to be happy about it. As a result, Williams is already letting the drama fly like a golf ball into a breezy summer day. Williams has mentioned that one of the chapters of his book will be all about Woods and their relationship. Of course, this is the chapter that got him the book deal, and the one that everyone is waiting to see.

“It will be just one of those interesting chapters in the book,” Williams said. “You learn a lot from reading biographies. I’m a big reader of those. Mine won’t be any different.”

Williams made it clear that he’s not happy with the timing of his dismissal.

“I’m not disappointed that I got fired, just disappointed in the timing of it, given how loyal I’ve been to him,” Williams said. “That obviously didn’t mean much to him.”

Williams also feels that Tiger is not a very loyal person, at least not as loyal as he is.

“I’m a stickler for loyalty. I stuck with Tiger through a difficult period when a lot of people thought that I should have left his side when things were not going the way they should have been going,” he said.

The more that is revealed to the public, the clearer the picture becomes. Tiger Woods, at least based on what most of us can see, appears to be as much of a self-centered, dysfunctional egomaniac as many speculated when he hit the scene back in 1997. Tiger’s reputation for ruthlessness, which was well-marketed and praised in the early part of the decade, now presents itself as a good old-fashioned character flaw.

I remember how the media admired the fact that Tiger would march out onto the golf course like a soldier preparing for war, not even looking up to smile at his own mother. I recall someone telling me about a five-year old boy begging Tiger for an autograph, with Woods so focused on putting practice that the little boy ceased to exist. I remember hearing about how the ever-so arrogant pseudo-institution called “Team Tiger” was locked down like a fortress, instantly ending long-term friendships whenever any of Tiger’s friends said a peep to the media. It was all a bit much and Tiger seemed to take himself and his golf tournaments a bit too seriously.

Now, Tiger appears to be finding that chickens eventually come home to roost. He is learning that reckless behavior has consequences, and how you treat other human beings is a reflection of the substance which lies inside of you. He is learning that there are more important things in life than winning golf tournaments; and also that he isn’t the center of the universe.

I’m not sure what kind of person Steve Williams happens to be. But the reality is that there has always been something about Tiger’s spirit that I both admired and feared, all at the same time. He’s not like Venus and Serena Williams, two Black people for whom you can both cheer and love. Tiger is the “Cau-bla-in-asian” guy that you wish well but thank God, that you don’t have to be anywhere near him.

A man can have all the money in the world, but if his soul is rotten, he may end up creating hell on earth for himself and other people.

Dr. Boyce Watkins is a Professor at Syracuse University and founder of the Your Black World Coalition.  To have Dr. Boyce commentary delivered to your email, please click here.

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