Tiger Woods, 33, was seriously injured in a car crash at 2:25 a.m. this morning at his Isleworth home, CNN reported. The cable channel preceded the story with the “Breaking News” banner.
The world’s best golfer pulled out of his driveway in a 2009 Cadillac SUV, hit a fire hydrant and later a tree, CNN said, quoting the Florida Highway Patrol. No alcohol is related to the accident, although charges are pending, CNN said, again quoting the patrol. Orange County Fire Rescue reached the scene at 2:28 a.m., and Woods was taken to a hospital in Ocoee.
Fox News Channel had the story first. CNN followed. Then MSNBC broke in about 2:50 p.m.
MSNBC reported that the airbags did not deploy because the vehicle was traveling slower than 33 miles per hour. MSNBC said the patrol did not report accident until after 2 p.m. today.
The story led the Fox News at 3 p.m.
WESH-Channel 2 broke into its regular schedule at 3 p.m. to announce the news and to show aerial footage of Woods’ home. During Ellen DeGeneres’ show, WESH ran a “Breaking News” crawl about the accident.
CNN noted that Woods was the highest-paid athlete in the world last year, earning roughly $110 million. CNN showed aerial footage of Woods’ home from WFTV-Channel 9 and WESH.
