Tiger Woods' ex-girlfriend makes rare comment about golfer after DUI arrest
Kristin Smith, the ex-girlfriend of Tiger Woods, has made a rare public comment about the golf legend after he was arrested and charged with DUI.
Woods was charged with DUI, property damage and refusal to submit to a lawful test after being involved in a 'rollover' car crash in Florida.
According to a county sheriff from the Martin County Sheriff's Office, Woods' Land Rover clipped a pressure truck as it was attempting to overtake at high speed at around 2pm ET on Friday.
The car lifted on to its side and rolled on the driver's door. Woods managed to climb out of the car, and the drivers of both vehicles were uninjured.
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Woods scored zero on a breathalyser test, but refused a urine test at the police station.
The 50-year-old was therefore charged with DUI, with drug recognition experts (DRE) believing he was impaired with 'some kind of medication or drug'.
Woods spent around eight hours in a prison cell before being released on bail, and returned home at around 11pm ET on Friday.
Following the crash, US outlet PEOPLE reported on Friday that Woods and current partner Vanessa Trump remain 'in love' and are 'happy' together after over a year of dating.
A source told the outlet: "Any issues they have are not about her. It's dealing with his frustrations about playing great golf and his pain, which at times is really confining."
Prior to his relationship with Trump, Woods was married to Swedish model Elin Nordegren between 2004 and 2010, with the pair getting divorced after Woods admitted to infidelity.
He dated Olympic skiing icon Lindsey Vonn between 2013 and 2015, and stylist Kristin Smith briefly in 2016.
Almost 10 years on, Smith - full name Kristin Dodson Smith - has posted a lengthy statement on Instagram, requesting that her family be treated with 'dignity and privacy'.
She states that 'traumatic unrelated incidents' in recent years means that she doesn't 'handle being unexpectedly approached or confrontation well', adding that she has 'taken the time to process' her personal experiences with Woods.
Smith, who has over 20,000 followers on the social media platform, wrote: "Regarding recent events and my past, I have moved forward and being dragged back into these moments, and untrue narratives is triggering.
"Beyond that, after traumatic incidents over the last couple of years, I don't handle being unexpectedly approached or confrontation well and it can be deeply unsettling for me.
"Anxiety and fear of my family and me being contacted, watched or followed, in hopes of provoking a reaction about something that has not involved me for a very long time simply does not get any easier."
She continued: "I have taken the time to process my personal experiences and am grateful for moments that have shaped me.
"I hope people will remember that the person they have celebrated and entertained by is, above all, a human being, and deserving of decency too, just like anyone else.
"I respectfully ask that my family and I be treated with dignity and privacy now and as this process plays out.
"For nearly ten years, I have chosen silence around this situation. That decision wasn't always easy. Finally not abandoning myself feels cathartic. Moving on."
Topics:Â Tiger Woods, Golf
Ryan Smart