Nantz Criticizes Tiger for Outbursts


In Saturday's round of the Masters microphones picked up Tiger Woods cursing following a bad shot. At the time, CBS Sports' anchor Jim Nantz called the outburst "disappointing."

However, in a Monday radio interview Nantz's criticism grew deeper. "If I said what he said on the air, I would be fired," Nantz said Monday on New York's WFAN. "I read in the USA Today and it was called 'mild language.' Someone on my broadcast dismissed it as him having a camera in his face.

"Well, guess what? Phil Mickelson had a camera in his face all week and did you even hear him come close to approaching that? He didn't hit every shot the way he wanted. Have you ever heard Arnold Palmer or Jack Nicklaus use that kind of language? What are the parameters between what's right or wrong?"

Before returning to competition, Woods promised to limit such outbursts on the course. Among those who were upset with Woods' deportment was Tom Watson.

On Sunday, Woods erupted after a bad shot on the 13th hole by yelling, "God, Tiger, Jesus Christ!" Nantz again brought up Tiger's reaction and, for the second day in a row, co-anchor Nick Faldo gave Woods a pass. "He has a camera in his face all day," Faldo said. "He has a microphone next to him all the time. That one will be an easy fix."

In a post-tournament interview, on-course reporter Peter Kostis alluded to Woods' cursing, asking about his "passion."

"People are making way too much of a big deal out of this thing," Woods said at the time.