Latest Nike Commercial features Tiger Woods Father’s Voice

The road to redemption for golfer Tiger Woods has already included a tearful press conference and a stint in rehab. But a new TV commercial for sponsor Nike uses Woods’s relationship with his deceased father to drive home the message that he’s a changed man.

The black-and-white 30-second spot features an imagined conversation between father and son. The golfer appears sombre and chastened, with the elder Woods speaking about taking responsibility.

But does this latest attempt at rebuilding Tiger’s tattered reputation go too far? Is the use of his father’s memory a career-saving move or an awkward last-ditch effort at salvation?

“Tiger, I am more prone to be inquisitive, to promote discussion. I want to find out what your thinking was, I want to find out what your feelings were, and … did you learn anything?” says the voiceover while a stone-faced Tiger stares at the camera.

I don’t really get it. Maybe you do. Perhaps there is more to come.

Nike, which was one of the sponsors to stick by Tiger through his scandal, obviously had to re-establish its relationship with its spokesman somehow. Realistically, the first ad since Woods’ “transgressions” was going to be awkward no matter how it was done.

The initial public feedback of the spot has been mixed, with some lauding its simplistic artistry and others taking it to task for either its confusing nature or emotional tenor.

There’s also a feeling–shared here–that the spot insults our intelligence. I mean, if you’re truly trying to be repentant and change, wouldn’t you do it more quietly? Not in front of millions of TV viewers, using your dead father’s voiceover in a commercial peddling your product.

“Nike is implicitly justifying sticking with Tiger by this very public shrink session that attempts to tap into the American belief in redemption and the second chance,” said consumer culture and marketing analyst Adam Hanft in a statement. “It’s deeply manipulative because it taps into everyone’s personal history of letting a parent down, and connects that desperate need for forgiveness to Tiger. He’s channeling a dead parent in a way that millions would like to do.”

It does seem that Woods is trying to have it both ways. When news of his infidelity surfaced, he chastised the media for being too involved in his personal affairs. Now, he and Nike have teamed to address the very issue he wanted so very much to keep under wraps.

But let’s be honest here. Thrusting this ad into the public consciousness on the day Woods — the world’s best golfer — makes his much-anticipated debut on golf’s biggest stage has immediately brought attention to the Nike brand. The very fact that it’s caused such a commotion amongst the masses could prove it’s a success already.