Steve Williams Is a Jerk, Not a Racist

I'm normally the last guy to leap to Steve Williams' defense. In fact, I ripped him when he was on the bag for Adam Scott's win at the WGC Bridgestone and took the occasion to make it all about him and his hatred for his former boss, Tiger Woods. In calling it the biggest win of his career in a post-round interview with CBS, Williams took thinly veiled shots at the man who made him rich and famous, essentially dismissing their 13 major wins together, including the British Open win where Woods collapsed, sobbing, into Stevie's arms 10 weeks after Earl Woods' passing. 

But there's a little misplaced outrage going on over Williams' latest indiscretion. 

Stevie told a group of caddies at an awards party in Shanghai prior to this weekend's HSBC that in giving that interview at the Bridgestone, "It was my aim to shove it up that black a------." Obviously, the inclusion of the word "black" was unfortunate and far from politically correct. But since when does Stevie care about political correctness? The guy has all the decorum of John Daly on dollar beer night. 

No, this is a simple case of a guy with a grudge and a public platform for airing it. 

Obviously, Woods wounded Williams deeply by sacking him after Stevie had served him faithfully as bodyguard, motivator, mental coach and, yes, as perhaps his only true friend. There's no way that Woods would have kept Williams at his side and on his bag for all those years and shared the major spotlight with him had Stevie exhibited anything approaching overt racism.

Now Tiger may prove me wrong when he addresses the media over the brouhaha. But I suspect that he'll chalk it up to Stevie being Stevie.

Jackass? Yes. Racist? No.