The New Tiger Ad --- Eeeeerieeeee

So, I’ve just watched the new Tiger ad for the gazillionth time. I guess it’s good to know that Nike still supports Tiger. Let’s face it – what Tiger did was downright sleazy. A beautiful wife, a fantastic life and he goes and plays around with wanton women? What are you thinking Tiger? Think with your brain, not with the little guy between your legs! Nonetheless, I have talked about that issue extensively and it’s not the topic for today’s post.

What is the topic though, is the new ad. In a nutshell, I echo the sentiments of Ian Mackellar of BBDO Toronto. He says it’s “creepy” and I agree.

First, as close as Tiger was to his dad, his dead is dead and to make matters worse, his dad died in May 2006, possibly even before his son started fooling around and certainly before Tiger’s out-of-control sexual desires became public.

Second, it’s eerie. No, make that very eerie. The late Mr. Woods says “I am more prone to be inquisitive. I want to find out what your thinking was. I want to find out what your feelings are and did you learn anything.” It’s almost like:

1. The late Mr. Woods had some sort of premonition of his son’s philandering
2. The words of the late Mr. Woods could have been attributed to anything that would play itself out in his son’s life
3. Thanks to technology, it was not the voice of the late Mr. Woods, but rather a Mr. Woods sound-alike

In any event, it’s very eerie and I don’t like that aspect of the ad

Three, by all means be subtle, but if this is Tiger’s re-entry statement into golf, it’s extremely weak. Tiger’s not talking. Tiger’s not playing. Tiger’s not doing anything. He’s motionless. Perhaps paralyzed with fear? Me thinks so.

I think Shawn King, vice-president and chief creative officer, Extreme Group said it well and make a very good point here - "This the first time I've watched a Nike ad for golf and thought more about Nike than I did Tiger Woods." - And that is exactly what Nike wants. It wants us to think more about it, than either Tiger or the game. Mission accomplished Nike.

Now, I know Tiger’s been dragged through hell and back the past few months, and while I don’t condone playing around, he really has paid for it --- big time.

Did Nike do the right thing? Absolutely. Take it a step further. Nike is a brilliant marketing machine. The ad rocks, in a macabre, sinister way. Most other brands loved Tiger as long as he was at the top. As soon as they sniffed trouble, they ran for the hills as fast as they could. Nike actually supported Tiger even during his darkest hours – and they did not get into his poor behaviour.

Tiger’s poor behaviour does not say much about him as a human and only time will tell whether he has what it takes to compete at the sport’s highest levels. Let’s see what happens in Augusta this week.