Tiger Woods’ Hidden Affair and Buried Photos: From Men’s Fitness Cover Deal to Divorce Settlement and Recent Scandals

Rumors circulated for years that Tiger Woods had been unfaithful to his former wife Elin Nordegren before their highly publicized divorce in 2010. It was speculated that photographs depicting Woods with alleged mistress Mindy Lawton were never published after a deal was struck between the National Enquirer and Woods, allowing him to feature on Men’s Fitness magazine’s cover instead. In testimony at former President Trump’s criminal trial in New York last week, David Pecker – then CEO of American Media Inc., which operated both publications – confirmed that this rumor held true: he had purchased the images showing Woods and Lawton meeting outside a church car park and subsequently used them as leverage for an agreement. This arrangement involved Woods appearing on Men’s Fitness with a 12-page feature about his diet, workout regimen, and marriage in exchange for burying these photos permanently. However, this deal did not provide the golfer with long term security: his relationship with Rachel Uchitel soon became widely known when it turned sour following their separation during Thanksgiving weekend of 2009; subsequently, many women came forward alleging affairs with Woods over a period spanning several years. The divorce settlement between Nordegren and Woods is reported to have cost the golfer almost $100 million. Since then, Woods has been involved in various relationships including one with Olympic skier Lindsey Vonn which ended amicably in 2015. More recently though, he split acrimoniously from his former girlfriend Erica Herman after she accused him of sexual harassment and required her to sign a non-disclosure agreement before ending the relationship entirely. In February last year, Woods was involved in a serious car accident which left many questioning whether this would have an impact on his career – thankfully though, he recovered fully from those injuries just five months later during The Masters 2021 tournament where he made history by securing his record-breaking 24th consecutive cut. However, Woods’ most recent outing at Augusta in the third round of this year’s competition did not go as planned: a scorecard reading an eye-wateringly high total of 82 – Woods’ worst ever showing during any Major Championship to date – left him languishing right down at the bottom end of the rankings.