Tiger Woods will play in an Irish charity PGA tour next month, but his fans and supporters have to forgive his tarnished reputation.

It was only a few months ago when the scandal broke in the news, which uncovered the string of mistresses Woods allegedly paid off to stay quiet.

As a result, he lost endorsements, and most importantly, his squeaky-clean image.

Getting back into the spotlight may be the right decision for Woods.

This way, he can develop a clean break with a past that has gotten hidden with the media.

Woods’ fans expect him to clean up his image.

Do fans have a right to Woods’ private life?

Or as fans, are we too wrapped up in the game?

When Woods came out with his tournament, he expected everyone to follow him as if nothing had happened.

Americans like scandals, and this is why we buy into celebrity news.

Tiger Woods may be the best pro golfer the Professional Golf Association has ever seen.

Over the years his skill has become indispensable.

He’s one of the best golfers in the world, and by far the most recognizable.

He does have many positives going for him and he is still young.

He does have time to rebuild his reputation as American and international sports fans are forgiving of his errors.

Sports celebrities are often raised to a higher stature, and this could become a problem for some fans getting carried away.

Time will tell if Tiger Woods will be able to get back on top of his game.

He was known to have one of the cleanest reputations of anyone, and fans’ eyes were opened when they realized he was just everyone else.

I like to think that his chance of getting his identity of the best pro golfer back is within reach, and certainly within reasonable measure.

The world will be watching, however, to see if he’s still worthy of superstar status.

Jennifer Brown can be reached at 581-7942 or jebrown2@eiu.edu.