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Tiger Woods was taken into custody after a crash on Jupiter Island, Florida, on Friday, the Martin County Sheriff’s Office confirmed.
At a news conference, Sheriff John Budensiek said the five-time Masters winner was traveling at a “high rate of speed” when his vehicle collided with another car, causing it to flip onto its driver’s side.
Budensiek added that Woods appeared to have exited the vehicle by “crawling” out of the passenger side.
Pakinomist contributor Jim Gray said Woods’ crash and subsequent arrest marks the latest chapter in what he called an ongoing “sad story.”
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Tiger Woods of Jupiter Links Golf Club before a match against Los Angeles Golf Club at the SoFi Center on March 23, 2026 in Palm Beach Gardens, Fla. (Adam Glanzman/TGL/TGL Golf via Getty Images)
“It’s a sad story and it continues to be a sad story. We’ve all been thrilled to see him play golf. He’s a national treasure (and) an international icon, maybe the greatest ever. Jack Nicklaus has multiple majors, but Tiger (is) widely recognized is the greatest golfer of all time,” Gray said Friday on “Special Report.”
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“To see this happen, not just once, but twice, now the third time … and to have been able to survive last time and now go through it again, it just makes you wonder who’s around him. Why does he keep getting in these circumstances? And he’s been so great with his driver on the course that maybe he should get a driver to drive him.”
Golfer Tiger Woods stands by his overturned vehicle in Jupiter Island, Fla., Friday, March 27, 2026. (Jason Oteri/AP)
Authorities said Woods “exemplified signs of impairment.” He blew “triple-zero” for alcohol but refused a urine test.
“DUI investigators came to the scene here and Mr. Woods exemplified signs of impairment. They did several tests on him. Of course he explained the injuries and the surgeries he had. We took that into consideration, but they did some in-depth roadside testing,” Budensiek added.
“We really didn’t suspect alcohol was involved in this case, and it turned out to be true at the jail. … But when it came time for us to ask for a urine sample, he refused. And so he’s been charged with DUI, damage to property and refusal to submit to a lawful test.”
Gray described the incident as a worrying pattern.
“It’s just another cry for help, it’s screaming out. At some point, somehow, someone has to get to him to get him this help. Get him a driver, get out from behind the wheel. When you’ve had so many surgeries, of course we see this in professional sports all the time, multiple surgeries lead to just tremendous pain.
“And with that pain, you have to somehow try to limit it, and it leads people down this path. I can’t speak to whether he’s gone down that path or not. I haven’t talked to his doctor, and I haven’t talked to him about it.
“But we know from habits and from the patterns that we see from others and his own pattern that something is drastically wrong here. Fortunately, he hasn’t hurt himself as badly as he did last time, and he didn’t hurt anyone else.”
The Masters begins April 9 at Augusta National, and Woods said recently that he has not ruled out playing in the first major of the season.
In the 14 majors since winning the green jacket in 2019, Woods has failed to muster a top 20 finish. It is his longest streak since he did not finish in the top 20 in the first six majors of his career in 1995 and 1996. In his last 26 majors, he has only four top 20 finishes.
Since finishing tied for ninth at the 2020 Farmers Insurance Open, his best finish in his 18 official events since then has been a tie for 37th at the 2020 PGA Championship.
“He’s given us so much excitement and so much joy. I think it would be a joy for all of us, for us to see him get back together. To get through the pain. He’s had surgery on his back, his neck, his Achilles, his knee … so on and so forth.
“They all add up. Just to be able to see him smile and be a part of the game and be around his kids and be able to function normally would be a great joy for us going forward. He doesn’t have to live up to himself and what he’s done in the past on the golf course. It’s set in stone and it’s set forever.”
Woods has not competed in a professional golf tournament since 2024, competing in just five events – the Genesis Invitational and the four majors. He withdrew from Genesis, finished dead last in the Masters and missed the cut in the other majors.
