Emergency at Tiger's, again

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In this image taken from video provided by AP Television News, Tiger Woods’ mother-in-law Barbro Hol­mberg (inset) is brought into Health Central Hospital in Ocoee, Fla. Tues­day. Emergency crews were sum­moned to Tiger Woods’ Orlando­area mansion for the second time in less than two weeks, this time because his mother-in-law was having stom­ach pains. (THE ASSOCIATED PRESS)

OCOEE, Fla. -- Tiger Woods' mother-in-law collapsed at his home and was rushed to a hospital early Tuesday, touching off the second media frenzy in two weeks surrounding the pro golfer's carefully guarded private life.

Barbro Holmberg was taken by ambulance to Health Central Hospital with stomach pains after a 911 call from Woods' house. Holmberg, a Swedish politician, was released about 11 hours later and returned to Woods' mansion, hospital spokesman Dan Yates said.

"She was wheeled out in a wheelchair just like everyone else," Yates said.

In a recording of the 911 call obtained Tuesday by The Associated Press, a panicking woman tells the dispatcher that her mother has collapsed.

"Hurry up," the woman says as a child can be heard crying in the background. "She collapsed in the bathroom. What do I do?"

A few seconds later the woman said her mother was breathing normally, talking and didn't appear to be hurt from her fall.

The caller wasn't identified. Woods' wife, Elin Nordegren, has a twin sister, but it wasn't clear whether she was at the house.

Health Central is the same hospital where Woods was treated after he crashed his sport utility vehicle outside his home in a gated community in nearby Windermere last month.

Holmberg, 57, arrived in the U.S. a few days ago, Yates said, just as her daughter grappled with fallout from the crash and the ensuing statement from Woods that he had extramarital "transgressions."

Woods and his wife have a two-year-old daughter and an infant son.

Family members visited Holmberg in the hospital, Yates said, but he did not specify whether Woods or his wife came. The family hired additional security to keep the media away.

Yates would not speculate on Holmberg's stomach problems or whether she had suffered previously with that type of distress. Holmberg's spokeswoman, Eva Malmborg, said she wasn't aware that Holmberg suffered from any disease.

Holmberg was expected back at her job as Gavleborg county governor in central-east Sweden next week, said her deputy, Olov Rydberg.

Intense media scrutiny has followed the world's No. 1 golfer since he hit a hydrant and a tree Nov. 27 about 2:25 a.m. Woods was cited for careless driving and fined US$164.

The attention didn't let up Tuesday, when dozens of live trucks, camera crews and reporters camped out on the hospital's lawn, awaiting word of Holmberg's condition.

The accident -- and Woods' refusal to answer questions about it -- fuelled speculation about a possible dispute between him and Elin.

Just days before the crash, a National Enquirer story alleged Woods had been seeing a New York nightclub hostess, Rachel Uchitel, who has denied it. After the crash, Us Weekly reported that a Los Angeles cocktail waitress named Jaimee Grubbs claims she had a 31-month affair with Woods.

-- The Associated Press

No ads have been pulled, but none has been shown, either

Commercials that feature Tiger Woods have disappeared from television since his SUV accident Nov. 27 unleashed a flood of reports about his possible marital infidelities.

The last time a Woods ad aired during primetime was Nov. 29. It was a 30-second spot for Gillette Co., Bloomberg reported. A broadcast for his own Chevron World Challenge charity golf tournament aired no Woods commercials, and he was gone from NFL games and other sports programs last weekend.

Woods' ads have also disappeared from some cable channels.

On Tuesday, Gatorade confirmed it is discontinuing its Tiger Woods drink but says it made the decision before the golfer's car accident led to a media firestorm surrounding his personal life.

The billion-dollar golfer's ability to influence shoppers has dropped. His ranking on the Davie Brown Index, which measures the appeal of celebrities to consumers, dropped from 6th place to 24, Bloomberg said.

Before the scandal, Woods was between Oprah Winfrey and above Bill Cosby on the index. He's now between actress Julia Roberts and former U.S. Secretary of State Colin Powell.

Despite the embarrassing publicity since crashing his Cadillac Escalade, Gillette said no Woods ads have been pulled, and Nike's golf division is not changing its advertising plans.

-- The Orlando Sentinel

Republished from the Winnipeg Free Press print edition December 9, 2009 C2