Rachel Uchitel, Woman Linked to Tiger Woods, Mum as Golf Great Gets Help
Rachel Uchitel, who allegedly had an affair with Woods, won't talk after all.
Dec. 3, 2009 — -- Just a day after Tiger Woods publicly vowed to be a better husband and father following reports of his extramarital affairs, the golf star may already receiving help for his "transgressions."
According to Chicago Sun-Times columnist Bill Zwecker, Woods and wife Elin Nordegren have begun "intense marriage counseling" sessions at their home several times a day.
"The continuing revelations of alleged Tiger Woods infidelities has placed the golfing megastar's management team in what one insider called 'panic mode,'" Zwecker reported.
Messages left with Woods' attorney, Mark Nejame, were not immediately returned.
And while the Woods' reportedly began to work out their marital woes at their home in Windermere, Fla., Rachel Uchitel, the first woman outted by the National Enquirer as one of the golfer's alleged mistresses, cancelled a press conference set for today.
Uchitel's attorney, Gloria Allred, released a statement citing "unforeseen circumstances" as the cause for the cancellation. No further explanation was offered, and calls to Allred's office were not immediately returned.
Woods' early morning car crash on Nov. 27, in which he plowed his black SUV into a fire hydrant and then a tree in his Islewood community, has sparked a litany of problems for the athlete who had enjoyed a scandal-free reputation.
In addition to the speculation about the athlete's alleged affairs -- two other women, Jaimee Grubbs and Kalika Moquin have also been linked to Woods in tabloid reports -- Woods also bowed out of the 2009 Chevron World Challenge golf tournament.
Citing injuries from the car accident, Woods announced earlier this week that he would not be hosting or playing in the tournament currently being held at the Sherwood Country Club in California.
Greg McLaughlin, the president of the Tiger Woods Foundation who directs the tournament, decided for to offer refunds to ticket holders for the typically non-refundable event, according to ESPN.
"We felt it was the right thing to do," McLaughlin told ESPN.
So far Woods' major corporate sponsors, including Nike and Gatorade, have vowed to stand by the athlete.
John Cook, one of Woods' longtime friends and neighbor, told ESPN that the Florida community where they both live has been taken over by media.
"The other day was a four-helicopter day at Isleworth," said Cook. "That's a pretty major deal for us. It's a sleepy little place. It's very private and very quiet. When there's four helicopters hovering around, you know something pretty major is going on."
Rick Reilly, a columnist for ESPN.com, told ABC's "Good Morning America" today that insiders are saying that Woods has a "real angry wife."
"It's not going to be all that easy to placate her," Reilly said. "Especially as this thing seems to get a little worse before it's going to get better."
Earlier this week, Woods paid a $164 driving citation issued to him by the Florida Highway Patrol, who said they did not have sufficient evidence to subpoena the golfer's medical records and would not be pressing criminal charges.
Police reports showed that Woods caused $3,300 worth of damage to the property, according to a police report. Traveling at 30 mph in a 25 mph zone, Woods' car had $8,000 of damage.
Another neighbor of Woods', the Adams family, released a statement through their lawyer Bill Sharpe stating that the athlete's injuries appeared to be consistent with a car accident and not "getting beaten up."