George Kirsch, author of the book Golf in America, was consulted by the Christian Science Monitor for its story on Tiger’s return to the Masters.

“[The Tiger scandal] raises the question specifically of what is considered appropriate or proper to put into sports writing, which may reflect the elitist cast of [the craft,]” Kirsch says. “But you could say that the mess media and feeding frenzy is more of an expression of the democratization of golf, where what people care more about is Woods’ celebrity status, not his golfing status.”