Tiger Woods arrested on suspicion of DUI after rollover crash in Florida

American golf legend Tiger Woods was arrested and jailed on charges of driving under the influence after being involved in a two-vehicle crash on Friday afternoon. The accident resulted in his Land Rover, travelling at a “high speed” on a residential road, rolling onto its side.

Martin County Sheriff John Budensiek confirmed the news and said Woods was able to crawl out of the passenger side and was not injured. “He did exemplify signs of an impairment,” Budensiek said, adding that investigators believe he had taken “some type of medication or drug.” He said Woods agreed to a Breathalyser test that showed no signs of alcohol, but refused a urine test and was arrested.

Under the Florida state law, Woods would now have to spend eight hours in jail before he could post bail. Budensiek said the sheriff’s office will follow the law regardless of who has been accused of a crime. However, he said Woods was being held in jail but separate from others.

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“He’s not going to be with other inmates that could hurt him or try to capitalise on what he did,” he said. “He’ll pay the price, but he’s not going to pay the price by getting punished in jail.”

Not the first time

This was the second time Woods had been arrested for DUI, not as a result of the influence of alcohol. He said he took a bad mix of painkillers when authorities found him in 2017 asleep behind the wheel of his car, the engine still running and its driver’s side damaged. At that time, Woods pleaded guilty to reckless driving.

President Donald Trump, whose former daughter-in-law is dating Tiger Woods, was asked about the golfer when he landed in Miami on Friday afternoon for an investment summit. “I feel so badly. He’s got some difficulty,” Trump said. “A very close friend of mine. He’s an amazing person. Amazing man. But, some difficulty," the American leader remarked.

According to The Associated Press, the crash occurred just before 2 p.m. (local time), not far from where Woods lives on Jupiter Island. Budensiek said Woods attempted to pass a pressure cleaner truck while driving on a two-lane road with a 30 mph (48 kph) speed limit. He said authorities could not determine how fast Woods was going.

The Land Rover eventually swerved to avoid a collision as he was passing the truck, but clipped the back end of the truck’s trailer, Budensiek said. Woods’ car then rolled onto its driver’s side. The sheriff said Woods was “cooperative, but he’s not trying to incriminate himself.” He said Woods has the right to refuse the urine test and that authorities “will never get definitive results with what he was impaired on.”

What is concerning is the fact that this was the fourth time Woods has been involved in a car crash, most recently in February 2021, when his SUV ran off a coastal road in Los Angeles at a high rate of speed, leading to multiple leg and ankle injuries. Woods said later, doctors considered amputation. He also previously sustained multiple injuries to his left knee and his back during his golf career.

With inputs from the Associated Press.