Tiger Woods reportedly returning to therapy

When Tiger Woods speaks Friday morning, he will say that he is returning to therapy and not immediately to the professional golf tour, according to a story by the Associated Press.

The wire service obtained a letter from PGA Tour Commissioner Tim Finchem to the tour policy board saying that Woods chose this particular moment to speak publicly for the first time about his admitted marital infidelity because, Finchem wrote, “As we understand it, Tiger’s therapy called for a week’s break at this time during which he has spent a few days with his children and then will make his statement before returning. Accordingly there was very little flexibility in the day for the announcement.”

The timing of Woods’ first public on-camera statement since news of his infidelity began to become public after he had an early-morning car accident in November had been criticized by some of the players here at the Accenture Match Play event.

Accenture was the first major Woods sponsor to have withdrawn its support from the world’s top-ranked and best-known golfer.

Woods is making his statement from the TPC Sawgrass clubhouse in Ponte Vedra Beach, Fla.

His only statements since the original car accident have been on his website, the final one coming on Dec. 11 and announcing an indefinite leave of absence from golf.

So anticipated is his statement that the Golf Channel is doing a 30-minute lead-in show before televising the announcement live at 8 a.m. PST.

For example, attorney Gloria Allred is planning a viewing of the Woods appearance with her client Veronica Siwik-Daniels (a.k.a. Joslyn James, a former porn star who had a three-year intimate romantic relationship with Woods, according to Allred’s press release).

Allred said she expects Woods to mention her client by name and acknowledge a relationship with her in Friday’s statement.

Friday’s appearance before the cameras is invitation-only before a limited number of media.

Woods’ agent, Mark Steinberg, had said in an e-mail on Wednesday that the invited group would include three wire service reporters plus “selected” members of the Golf Writers Assn. of America.

But the members of the golf writers group voted Thursday not to participate because Woods will not be taking questions.

There had not even been any confirmation until now that Woods was undergoing any sort of rehabilitation, though there had been tabloid reports of his attendance at a Mississippi sexual rehab clinic.

Also, there has been speculation that Woods would return to competitive golf at a made-for television event called the Tavistock Cup in Florida, a competition beginning March 22 between private clubs where access could also be tightly controlled.

diane.pucin@latimes.com

twitter.com/mepucin

Jeff Shain of the Orlando Sentinel contributed to this report.