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Police who arrested Tiger Woods on a DUI charge found the golfer asleep at the wheel on the side of a six-lane Florida road in the dark of early morning, the engine running and his right blinker flashing.
His speech was slow and slurred, though there was no alcohol in his system and he didn't know how far away he was from home.
The details contained in a police affidavit did little to clear up the curious circumstances of what happened on Memorial Day morning, only to confirm Woods' statement that he had not been drinking.
Police described Woods as "cooperative as much as possible", saying he had trouble keeping his eyes open.
The affidavit was released a day after Woods spent nearly four hours in the Palm Beach County jail on a DUI charge.
In a statement, Woods attributed the arrest to an "unexpected reaction" to prescription medicine.
"I understand the severity of what I did, and I take full responsibility for my actions," he said.
Tyres were flat, fresh damage to driver's side of car
Woods has not competed in four months, and he had fusion surgery on his lower back — his fourth back surgery since April 2014 — on April 20 that will keep him off the PGA Tour for at least the rest of the season.
He told police he had taken several prescriptions.
According to an incident report, police described fresh damage to the driver's side of the car — both tyres were flat, along with minor damage to the rims.
There also was minor damage to the front driver's side bumper and rear bumper, and the passenger rear tail light appeared to be out.
The affidavit said Woods failed a sobriety test on the side of the road because he couldn't keep his balance or follow instructions.
At one point, police said Woods appeared to be on the verge of falling over and one officer rushed over to catch him if needed.
Breath tests, however, showed no alcohol in his system. Police said Woods agreed to a urine test.
The report said Woods changed his story on where he was coming from and where he was going.
His car was parked in a direction headed the opposite way from his home on Jupiter Island.
The affidavit listed four medications — including opioid pain medication Vicodin — that Woods reported taking.
The FDA warning for Vicodin says it "may impair the mental and/or physical abilities required for the performance of potentially hazardous tasks such as driving a car or operating machinery; patients should be cautioned accordingly".
Long battle with back surgeries since 2014
Woods told police he was recovering from surgery. Before the four back surgeries, Woods had four surgeries on his left knee dating to his freshman year at Stanford in 1994.
The report said Woods was "extremely sleepy," and the officer observed it was hard for Woods to keep his eyes open and to walk.
In the incident report filed by the four officers at the scene, Woods kept dozing off even after his initial contact with police.
"I didn't realise the mix of medications had affected me so strongly," Woods said in his statement.
Woods, who had been number one longer than any other golfer, has not been seen at a golf tournament since he opened with a 77 at the Omega Dubai Desert Classic in February, withdrawing the next day because of back spasms.
He has battled through back surgeries from a week before the 2014 Masters until his most recent fusion surgery on his lower back.
AP
Topics: crime, sport, law-crime-and-justice, golf, united-states
First posted