Woods: Buddhism is his answer

Tiger Woods had nearly three months to prepare, but it looked like he needed three more. Monotone. Vague. Painfully rehearsed. The meat of what Woods said was:

“Now, every one of you has good reason to be critical of me. I know I have bitterly disappointed all of you. I am embarrassed that I have put you in this position. I have a lot to atone for.

“I was unfaithful. I had affairs. I cheated. What I did was unacceptable and I am the only person to blame.”

The AP provided the above video of part of Woods’ apology and CBS News has the full text of Woods’ speech. (That’s what it was, after all.) What struck me while I was packing my bag and running out the door was Woods’ mentioning Buddhism as part of his road to recovery:

Part of following this path for me is Buddhism, which my mother taught me at a young age. People probably don’t realize it, but I was raised a Buddhist, and I actively practiced my faith from childhood until I drifted away from it in recent years. Buddhism teaches that a creation of things outside ourselves causes an unhappy and pointless search for security. It teaches me to stop following every impulse and to learn restraint. Obviously, I lost track of what I was taught.

Cue Brit Hume.

We’ve seen this script before. Think Michael Vick or Paris Hilton or Alex Rodriguez. Is this different?