Tiger Woods speaks on the Brandel Chamblee situation, says ball is in Golf Channel’s court

Rarely does Tiger Woods address an issue that his team already spoke on, but the latest situation with the Golf Channel’s Brandel Chamblee had Woods talking for the first time on Monday during an exhibition match against Rory McIlroy.

Woods was asked about Chamblee’s article he posted for Golf.com in which he compared Tiger’s rules problems this season with a young Chamblee cheating on a test in school, and while Chamblee did come out and apologize, Tiger still thinks the Golf Channel should do something about what Chamblee said.

“All I am going to say is that I know I am going forward. But then, I don’t know what the Golf Channel is going to do or not. But then that’s up to them. The whole issue has been very disappointing, as he didn’t really apologize and he sort of reignited the whole situation.

“So the ball really is in the court of the Golf Channel and what they are prepared to do.”

I’m not sure if Tiger is suggested that Golf Channel suspend Chamblee, but we all know that when you get on Tiger’s naughty list he doesn’t really ever cross you off, so I would guess that Woods is just hinting at an idea of avoiding Golf Channel all together until something is done.

Chamblee’s initial attack of Tiger’s strange rules season included this paragraph that he pegged in a story where he gave a lot of the big names in the golf world a grade, with Tiger landing a “F.”

When I was in the fourth grade, I cheated on a math test and when I got the paper back it had ‘100’ written at the top and just below the grade, was this quote: ‘Oh, what a tangled web we weave when first we practice to deceive!’ It was an oft-quoted line from the epic poem ‘Marmion’ by Sir Walter Scott, and my teacher’s message was clear. Written once more beneath that quote was my grade of ‘100,’ but this time with a line drawn through it and beneath that an F. I never did ask my teacher how she knew I cheated and I certainly didn’t protest the grade. I knew I had done the wrong thing and my teacher the right, but I never forgot the way I felt when I read that quote.

“I remember when we only talked about Tiger’s golf. I miss those days. He won five times and contended in majors and won the Vardon Trophy and … how shall we say this … was a little cavalier with the rules.”

The backlash from that accusation were quick, but only from Tiger’s agent, Mark Steinberg, who hinted at actual legal action because of the idea that Woods bends the rules when he’s on the golf course.

Steinberg was with Woods in China and also mentioned that he thinks it is time for Golf Channel to step up and do something about the cheating implications that Chamblee brought up, even if he didn’t do that during a Golf Channel broadcast.

“I’m all done talking about it, and it’s now in the hands of the Golf Channel,” Steinberg said. “That’s Tiger’s view and that’s mine, and all we want to do is move forward. And whether the Golf Channel moves forward as well, then we’ll have to wait and see.”

Personally, I don’t really see this as a Golf Channel problem at all. Chamblee said something that I think we can all agree crossed the line, but he wasn’t doing so in front of a Golf Channel microphone or on air. If Woods wants to take this out on the one company that spends 24 hours a day promoting the game, then I guess that is his decision, but for now I think he said what he wanted to say and hopefully we can all move on from this as the golf offseason really starts to set in.

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Shane Bacon is the editor of Devil Ball Golf and Busted Racquet on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at shanebaconblogs@yahoo.com or follow him on Twitter at @ShaneBacon!