Tiger Woods’ DUI arrest and subsequent treatment announcement after Florida crash
Consensus Summary
Tiger Woods was arrested for DUI in Florida after his Land Rover crashed and overturned on March 27, with bodycam footage showing his stunned reaction when handcuffed. Deputy Tatiana Levenar cited impaired faculties due to an unknown substance, later confirmed as hydrocodone pills Woods admitted taking earlier. Both sources agree Woods denied alcohol use and refused a urine test, though he passed a breathalyzer. Woods pleaded not guilty and announced indefinite withdrawal from golf to seek treatment, citing chronic injuries including over 20 surgeries on his right leg. The case is set for a May 5 hearing, and Woods was released on bail after eight hours. While both articles align on core facts, the Guardian provides more detail on Woods’s golf absence and injury history, while ABC highlights Florida’s updated DUI testing laws and the judge’s approval for his treatment travel.
✓ Verified by 2+ sources
Key details reported by multiple sources:
- Tiger Woods was arrested for DUI in Martin County, Florida, on March 27 after his Land Rover crashed and rolled onto its side on Jupiter Island
- Deputy Tatiana Levenar told Woods ‘I do believe your normal faculties are impaired, and you’re under an unknown substance, so at this time you’re under arrest for DUI’
- Woods responded to arrest with ‘I’m being arrested?’ before Levenar confirmed ‘Yes, sir’
- Officers found two white pills in Woods’s pocket, which he identified as Norco (hydrocodone, a prescription opioid)
- Woods admitted to taking ‘a few medications’ earlier in the day but denied drinking alcohol; a breath test showed no alcohol
- Woods refused a urine test and was released on bail eight hours after arrest
- Woods pleaded not guilty to DUI and demanded a jury trial; his case is due back in court on May 5 for a readiness hearing
- Woods announced he is stepping away from golf ‘to seek treatment and focus on my health’
- Woods has undergone seven back surgeries and over 20 surgeries on his right leg, including a ruptured Achilles tendon
- Woods was hiccuping during questioning and had to be told to keep his head still during sobriety tests
Points of Difference
Details reported by only one source:
- Woods told officers he was looking down at his phone and changing the radio station before the crash, saying ‘I looked down at my phone, and all of a sudden – boom’
- Deputy Levenar’s arrest report explicitly states Woods ‘was unable to safely operate the motor vehicle’ based on observations and training
- Woods has not competed on the PGA Tour since July 2024, though he played in the TGL indoor league last Tuesday
- The Guardian notes Woods’s back pain history and multiple surgeries to address injuries
- Florida police released the bodycam footage one day after Woods was granted permission by a judge to leave the U.S. for inpatient treatment
- ABC clarifies the crash occurred on a residential road on Jupiter Island and notes no one was injured
- ABC specifies Woods was wearing a compression sock over his right knee during questioning
- ABC mentions Florida’s 2023 law change making refusal of breath/blood/urine tests a misdemeanor even for first offenses
Contradictions
Conflicting information between sources:
- The Guardian mentions Woods’s last PGA Tour appearance was in July 2024, while ABC does not specify this exact date
- The Guardian highlights Woods’s absence from PGA Tour play since July 2024, but ABC omits this detail entirely
- ABC notes the judge’s ruling allowing Woods to leave the U.S. for treatment, while the Guardian does not mention this explicitly
- The Guardian describes Woods as ‘limping’ during questioning, though ABC does not use this exact term
- ABC emphasizes the residential road location of the crash, while the Guardian does not specify this detail
Source Articles
Bodycam footage shows Tiger Woods’s shock after crash: ‘I’m being arrested?’
Golfer has pled not guilty to DUI charges Hydrocodone pills found in pocket after arrest Bodycam footage of Tiger Woods’s arrest for DUI shows the golfer looking surprised when he was handcuffed by po...
Police release body cam footage showing Tiger Woods stunned over arrest
Body camera footage shows Tiger Woods expressing astonishment as he was handcuffed after crashing his SUV last week in Florida....