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Nancy Grace

Tiger Woods`s Life Unravels After Minor Car Crash

Aired December 23, 2009 - 20:00   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

NANCY GRACE, HOST: Superstar golf phenomenon Tiger Woods drives out of his multi-million-dollar compound barefoot, 2:00 AM after Thanksgiving Day celebrations, and has a head-on collision with a tree and a fire hydrant. His young wife, the mother of his two children, says she hears the crash from inside, runs out and beats out both back windows of Woods`s Cadillac.

Woods refusing repeatedly to speak to police, immediately pulls out of his own golf tournament. Gatorade drops the Tiger Woods drink, primetime ads dry up. Alleged mistresses hit double digits, including a swimsuit model, two porn stars and a waitress at a pancake house. As the tally rises, what does it mean to their reported prenup? Most of all, what could it mean to a divorce?

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JAIMEE GRUBBS, TIGER`S ALLEGED MISTRESS: When I did come out, I kind of did a lot on emotion. I didn`t really think anything through. I was just -- I was hurt. And I told my story, and I didn`t really think of what it was going to do.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: One of the women who claims she had an affair with Tiger Woods is apologizing to his wife.

GRUBBS: I guess I would be deeply sorry for never considering her during the whole process.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Jaimee Grubbs claims she had a 31-month affair with Tiger Woods.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Jaimee Grubbs was the subject of that "US Weekly" magazine cover story, the one that featured a voicemail allegedly from Tiger Woods to her.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Hey, it`s -- it`s Tiger. I need you do me a huge favor. Can you please take your name off your phone? I wife went through my phone and may be calling you.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Now e-mails come public, allegedly sent by Tiger Woods to alleged mistress Rachel Uchitel published inside "In Touch" magazine. Woods allegedly e-mails, "Never thought I would care and be as emotional as I am with you. You bring a side of me I never thought existed, both good and bad. I don`t like feeling so vulnerable. It bothers me a lot. I`m much tougher than this. I just want you to know what`s going on inside me."

GRUBBS: The hardest part for me is to know that this whole time, you know, two-and-a-half years, that I thought that I could have been the only woman and the only reason why, you know, we didn`t hang out as much would be that he was busy. And to go back and think that, you know, his reasons for being busy may have been another woman is -- it is really hard.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: A woman who claims she had an affair with Tiger Woods is angrily denouncing newspaper reports that she took money from him. Jamie Jungers said she only asked Tiger Woods for money once during the alleged year-and-a-half relationship. Jungers said she never expected more than a one-time fling with the golf superstar but that it developed into a boyfriend/girlfriend affair.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: There seem to be real relationships. As you read these text messages, this wasn`t ships in the night. The odd thing about it is for a person like, hey, who is a playboy, for want of a better term, he really got emotionally involved with these women.

GRUBBS: I did feel guilty that, you know, he`s spending his time with somebody, you know, that isn`t his wife. But you know, he never mentioned her, and it was kind of -- you know, I never thought about it.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

GRACE: To our chief editorial producer, Ellie Jostad. Ellie, what more can you tell me?

ELLIE JOSTAD, NANCY GRACE PRODUCER: Nancy, it was Thanksgiving Weekend when reports began to emerge that Tiger Woods, the number one golfer in the world, one of the top athletes in the world, had been involved in some sort of car accident.

Now, it turns out what happened is, in the early morning hours of November 27th, Tiger Woods left his own home that he shares with his wife, Elin, and their two small children -- this home is in the Isleworth subdivision, a very exclusive gated community in Windermere, Florida. Tiger Woods pulled out of his driveway, somehow apparently lost control of his vehicle, hit a fire hydrant, then hit a neighbor`s tree.

Now, over the course of that weekend, we began to learn some more details about that accident. Mark Williams, fill in the blanks. What else did we learn about that accident?

MARK WILLIAMS, ANCHOR/REPORTER: Well, Ellie, what we did learn is that he didn`t -- he kind of stayed tight-lipped about that, about the accident itself. But one of the other things that we learned is that Elin, his wife, heard the crash. She came out of their posh, $2.4 million home allegedly with a golf club and beat out the back windows of the Escalade that he was driving, in order to get him out of the truck. He ended up on the pavement. And the neighbors said he went in and out of consciousness for at least six minutes until EMS arrived.

JOSTAD: Well, and Kim Serafin, there were conflicting reports exactly, you know, how badly injured Tiger Woods was in the accident. What do you know about it? How bad was he hurt.

KIM SERAFIN, "IN TOUCH WEEKLY": Exactly. I mean, a lot of speculation about how he got hurt, actually, rumors, reports maybe him and Elin had a fight and he got some injuries from that. Other reports saying, no, he was injured from the crash.

Now, of course, we heard from the neighbors who ran over, heard the crash, ran over -- by the time some of the neighbors got there, they found Tiger -- they brought out some pillows, blankets. One of the neighbors said his lip was bleeding. But at this point, we have not seen Tiger. We have not seen any photos of him. Nobody really knows what these injuries are or how bad they were.

Other reports were speculating that maybe that`s why he didn`t come out sooner to say something, a lot of people saying if he had come out sooner, maybe these problems wouldn`t be as bad, but maybe one of the reasons he didn`t come out and speak about this and talk about his transgressions or his infidelities was because he couldn`t because of injuries his face.

JOSTAD: Well, and one thing that`s sort of added fuel to the fire or sort of raised a red flag about this car accident was that in the first statement that Tiger Woods gave -- and it was a couple of days had passed before he said anything -- finally puts a statement up on his Web site and he says that the accident was very embarrassing.

Now, a lot of people wondered, you know, Well, if you just got in a little fender-bender outside your house, what`s so embarrassing about that? Well, it turns out it`s the timing. This accident happened just a day or two after "The National Enquirer" broke a story alleging that Tiger Woods, who had always seemed to be a family man, always seen with his children, never any sort of, you know, black marks on his record -- at that point, they came out with a story, you know, saying he`s been having an affair with this woman. He even spent time with her down in Australia. And it was a big shock to everybody.

Now, Mark Williams, tell me, what more did we learn about this first woman linked to Tiger Woods, Rachel Uchitel?

WILLIAMS: Well, Rachel Uchitel is a New York City party planner or a cocktail waitress, whatever you -- you want to make into that. She flew out to the West Coast right after that story appeared in that publication, and she got the representation of Gloria Allred right off the bat. Since that time, she`s been basically under cover some place, still apparently in the LA area, waiting for all the dust to settle.

JOSTAD: And Kim Serafin, once we heard about this Rachel Uchitel, then it was like there were floodgates opened. We started to hear about other women who either came forward and claimed they were in a relationship at some point with Tiger Woods, or you know, they were outed by a third source, somebody saying that, you know, these two were together. What more did we learn about other women that were allegedly linked to Tiger Woods?

SERAFIN: Right. Exactly. Initially, it was just Rachel and people were saying maybe this is what caused the fight, the reported fight between Tiger and Elin. Now, Rachel has come out and she has said she`s not had an affair, not been involved with Tiger, so she did make that very clear. And of course, we know Rachel was supposed to have a press conference and then canceled it. So we haven`t really heard much from her.

But then, you`re right, the floodgates just opened, and many other women started coming out, doing interviews, appearing on the "Today" show, talking about the relationships that they allegedly had with Tiger that were apparently not one-night flings. Many of these women who have come out have said that they have had affairs with Tiger that lasted anywhere from six months to a year-and-a-half, allegedly.

JOSTAD: Well, and Mark Williams, these women are kind of all over the place. I think that there are at least a few of them down in your neck of the woods, in Florida, you know, near where Tiger Woods lived with his family. There are some Florida women also linked to Tiger Woods, correct?

WILLIAMS: Yes, two in particular, Ellie. One was a manager at a pancake house right near where Tiger lives. He said -- she said that he walked in one night with some of his buddies and they struck up a conversation, and then allegedly a relationship afterwards. And also, there`s another woman who is, like, 15 years his senior who supposedly also allegedly had an affair with Tiger Woods.

But by the same token, on my Web site, Halifaxareanewswatch.com, the one thing I do have is I have a scorecard. And Ellie, I have the first five or six people there, and everybody else kind of just piled on as soon as Tiger-gate first opened the doors.

JOSTAD: Right. Right. Well, and I should point out that Tiger Woods -- you know, like I said, he had that first, you know, statement where he just kind of said, I`m embarrassed about the car crash, my wife, Elin, acted heroically to help me. A few days after that, he put out another report talking about transgressions.

And then finally, it was almost two weeks after the car accident that he finally -- and this is after, you know, countless tabloid reports, reports all over the media about many women being linked to him -- he finally puts out a report that says, you know, he admits to infidelity.

So let me ask you, Kim Serafin, do we know how Tiger Woods was able to kind of -- if these affairs have been going on for years, how was he able to keep it quiet?

SERAFIN: That is the big question, how was he able to keep this quiet? Especially because, as you mentioned before, when one woman came out, suddenly the floodgates opened and all of these women, who had apparently saved text messages, saved voicemails, had e-mails from Tiger -- it all kind of came out. And it wasn`t until two weeks after the crash that he finally put out this statement saying that he was leaving golf indefinitely and admitted to these infidelities.

But it is pretty amazing that none of this had come out before, although Tiger is very private. That is the one thing that you keep hearing over and over. Tiger has always been very private. Elin has been very private. And a lot of reporters, people who have watched him, reported on him, sports writers have said, you know, they kind of respected his privacy because that`s who he was. It was so different than the image that he put out there, maybe people just didn`t even expect it. Nobody probably would have believed it because it was so different than the image that he had out there.

JOSTAD: Well, and Sue Moss, you`re a family law attorney, child advocate. Is it possible -- I mean, we`ve heard reports that some of these alleged, you know, mistresses were actually given money, given some sort of incentive along the line to keep quiet. I mean, is that something that has happened in similar cases like this, paid to keep your mouth shut?

SUSAN MOSS, FAMILY LAW ATTORNEY: Oh, absolutely. I know a billion reasons why all these women are coming forward. This is like the cheating women full employment act! I mean, what a way to end a recession!

JOSTAD: Yes. Exactly. Now -- but let me ask you this, though, Sue. Wouldn`t you, if -- you know, some of these women say there was no actual contract. I know if I was going to pay somebody off to keep quiet, I would make sure I had some sort of written agreement with them so if they did came forward, I`d have some sort of, you know, way to get back at them.

MOSS: Well, chances are there is a written contract, but there`s a confidentiality clause in that written contract. I mean, there`s a reason why the first woman who was alleged to be the first affair -- why she had a press conference scheduled, and the next thing you know, she canceled it. There`s a reason. That doesn`t just happen with a celebrity of Tiger`s status. She must have received some money.

JOSTAD: Well, and also, I should point out, too, that Gloria Allred, the woman who represents Rachel Uchitel, the first woman that was allegedly linked to Tiger Woods -- she hasn`t commented on any sort of settlement, but her daughter, Lisa Bloom, who is an analyst for this network, said that, you know, her mother wouldn`t be involved a case unless there was at least a million dollars or so at stake. So it is possible that there was some sort of agreement, some sort of money that changed hands. Would that make sense to you, Sue Moss?

MOSS: Oh, absolutely. Everything in this case is more than we know about, and the facts are still coming forward. Let me tell you something. He leaves his house at 2:00 AM without shoes, then hits a tree and takes a snooze? And the prosecutors say that there was no booze? Common sense these people did lose!

(BEGIN AUDIO CLIP)

911 OPERATOR: Is he unconscious?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes.

911 OPERATOR: OK. Are you able to tell if he`s breathing?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: No, I can`t tell right now.

911 OPERATOR: OK. All right. We do have help on the way. What color is his car, too?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It`s a black Escalade.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: What`s happened?

911 OPERATOR: Is anyone able to open the door?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: (INAUDIBLE) we`re trying to figure out right now.

911 OPERATOR: OK, is he trapped inside of the vehicle, or is he on the ground?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: No, we`re just trying to get the police here right now. We don`t know what happened. We`re just trying to -- we`re figuring it all out right now. We just -- we`re on the phone to the police right now.

(END AUDIO CLIP)

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Breaking news. As reports of divorce between Tiger Woods and wife Elin Nordegren intensify, "The New York Daily News" reports Woods`s wife, Elin, is consulting Hollywood divorce guru Sorrell Trope.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Tiger isn`t out of the woods yet!

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Radaronline reporting Tiger Woods supposedly told an alleged mistress he only got married to boost his public image.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: "People" magazines reporting this. Tiger Woods`s wife, Elin, wants out. She`s planning to leave him.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Do you think that Tiger`s a sex addict?

GRUBBS: The man that I knew, the Tiger that I knew, I would never think that.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

GRACE: Let`s unleash the lawyers. Joining us tonight, Neal Hersh, divorce attorney joining us out of LA -- Mr. Hersh has represented such famous stars as Kim Bassinger, Robin Givens, a very long list of real talents. To renowned attorney out of the Philadelphia jurisdiction Joe Lawless, defense attorney and author of "Prosecutorial Misconduct." And also well-known attorney in his jurisdiction, Paul Batista, trial attorney, author of "Death`s Witness."

Gentlemen, welcome. Now, to you, Mr. Hersh. What do you make of this re-up of the prenup, reportedly, Tiger Woods offering Elin Nordegren $75 million to $80 million just to stay in it for seven more years?

NEAL HERSH, DIVORCE ATTORNEY: Well, prenuptial agreements are renegotiated oftentimes after they`re -- after the marriage, and this is just no exception. Obviously, I think he`s trying to work on saving his marriage, and I`m sure there`s negotiations going on that will provide her a financial incentive to stay. It seems from the news reports that they haven`t succeeded, obviously.

GRACE: Let`s talk about their assets. Mr. Hersh, if you would, just for a moment -- Ellie Jostad, could you please go through what Woods`s assets are, that we know of?

JOSTAD: Right.

GRACE: And then I`ll get the lawyers to weigh in, what would she be entitled to now, in light of a prenup that is allegedly ironclad. Could she get more if a divorce goes through? Go ahead, Ellie.

JOSTAD: OK, so hold your horses, or hold onto your seat. This is a lot of stuff -- $92 million in career tournament winnings, estimated $100 million a year in endorsements -- that includes $30 million from Nike, an estimated $10 million from Gatorade, an estimated $20 million from Gillette -- $17 million in personal appearances.

He`s got a billion-dollar company, Tiger Woods Designs, that designs golf courses all over the world. He`s got that $10 million yacht, the Privacy. He`s got a $38 million estate in Jupiter, Florida. I believe that is still under construction. He`s got another $65 million estate in the Hamptons. He`s got that home in Windermere, Florida, estimated at $2.5 million. He`s got a second home in that same subdivision. He`s also got this $2.2 million home in Sweden, which we believe is under his wife`s name. Then we`ve got homes in California, Jackson Hole, Wyoming, Dubai, and an apartment in Stockholm.

GRACE: OK. I was doing some very quick addition, but I got over $1.5 billion, Neal Hersh. So I will let you, Lawless and Batista tell me what you think she would get in a divorce. First you, Mr. Hersh.

HERSH: Well, if the prenup is valid and they seem to indicate that it is a good prenuptial agreement, she gets only what that says. And then she obviously, of course, has a right to ask for child support. If the prenup is set aside for a number of reasons, all of the assets that just were listed are up for grabs.

GRACE: To you, Joe Lawless. What about it? If there were no prenup, she would be getting half of nearly $2 billion. If she sticks to the prenup, she`s going to get a whole lot less, maybe $55 million.

JOE LAWLESS, DEFENSE ATTORNEY: Well, you know, Nancy, I think what Elin Nordegren wants more than anything else at this point is her life back, some privacy for her kids. And $55 million or a billion isn`t going to undo the damage Tiger Woods did to his wife, to his family, to the sport of golf. And I think what she`s going to do is pack up, go somewhere and let the lawyers hash out the numbers and try to get on with her life.

I grew up in an era where you didn`t -- you know, your first thought when you`re trying to rebuild your marriage wasn`t writing your wife a check for $75 million. This has become about money to everybody but her. And from what I`ve seen, she`s just interested in maintaining her privacy and keeping her kids together.

GRACE: OK, Paul Batista, weigh in.

PAUL BATISTA, DEFENSE ATTORNEY: Well, hell hath no fury like a scorned woman, and in this case, money is going to be the best revenge, Nancy. That`s where she`s going to go.

GRACE: Now you`re talking like a lawyer, Batista. What is your heart made of, stone?

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(BEGIN AUDIO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Hey, it`s -- I need you to do me a huge favor. Can you please take your name off your phone? My wife went through my phone and may be calling you. Because she can, please take your name off that, and what do you call it, just have it as a number on the voicemail, just have it as your telephone number, OK? You got to do this for me. Huge. Quickly. All right, bye.

(END AUDIO CLIP)

GRACE: Of course, we cannot independently confirm that`s Tiger Woods`s voice. "Newsweek, Ian Drew from "US Weekly" says they have investigated exhaustively. They say it is him. Ian Drew, other than that message he allegedly left for yet another woman who`s come out of the woodwork, a cocktail waitress, I want to talk to you about the neighbors...

IAN DREW, "US WEEKLY": Yes.

GRACE: ... the neighbors of Tiger Woods, what they heard that evening. What have you learned?

DREW: Well, one thing that`s very interesting that I`ve just been chomping here to bring up is that Tiger has had sleeping problems. Several friends and neighbors say he doesn`t sleep. He`s up all night. And he`s admitted to several sources that he takes Ambien quite regularly, maybe hinting at...

GRACE: Ian, Ian, Ian.

DREW: Uh-huh?

GRACE: Don`t care...

DREW: Yes.

GRACE: ... about Ambien!

DREW: No.

GRACE: What is your point, Ian Drew from "US Weekly"?

DREW: My point is exactly what I was saying. You were talking about intoxication. You were talking about those things. Why wasn`t a breathalyzer -- some people are pointing to that Ambien could have caused this because when you stay up on Ambien, it does have drug-like effects.

GRACE: Did neighbors hear shouting that evening?

DREW: They did. Yes, they did. That, as well. We did speak to several neighbors who were sure there was some sort of altercation at the house that also preceded this.

GRACE: It`s my understanding -- let`s pull up that quote one more time. This is a quote from "US Weekly." "They were shouting. They didn`t care who heard. Everyone in the neighborhood was talking about how Elin beat his" -- Tiger Woods`s -- "A-S-S."

DREW: Exactly. Yes.

GRACE: Now, look, I don`t care if they fought all night. This is what I care about, Ian Drew.

DREW: Yes.

GRACE: If the neighbors heard them fighting, having a domestic argument, that means that the story they both told police was a lie. She said she heard the crash -- this is two houses down -- from inside her home -- and ran out handily carrying a wedge and beat the car in to save his life.

DREW: Yes. Yes.

GRACE: If that is a lie, then there is a cover-up not just to the wife, but to police. If you did that or I did that, Ian Drew, we would be at police headquarters right now.

DREW: Well, of course. And sources are also saying that he`s lying not really to only help himself, but there`s a cover-up going on to protect his wife because she could be accused of causing this accident.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JAIMEE GRUBBS, TIGER WOODS` ALLEGED MISTRESS: I guess if you -- if I were to seriously think about it, I -- you know, I did feel guilty.

UNIDENTIFIED REPORTER: Public apology from an alleged mistress to a scorned wife?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Do you think that tiger`s a sex addict?

GRUBBS: The man that I knew, the Tiger that I knew, I would never think that. You know, it was never about that. He never, you know, just kind of said come over and that`s what`s going to happen.

NANCY GRACE, HOST: That is alleged mistress number two, Jaimee Grubbs, describing how she was in love with Tiger Woods.

UNIDENTIFIED REPORTER: The 24-year-old tells the TV show "Extra" she was intimate with Woods 20 times over a 3-year period, claims Tiger Woods never discussed his wife Elin and she feels badly for her.

GRACE: Just released, part of 100 e-mails and text messages in which Tiger Woods claims he`s found his soul mate.

TOM O`NEIL, SENIOR EDITOR IN TOUCH WEEKLY, COVERING STORY: The series of these e-mails take place where he first professes all this love for her and then he starts telling her how jealous he is.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I don`t know if this is going to work. I thought I was getting know you but it feels like I`m just another person who happens to be famous. Every time I think about it, I get a lump in my throat. Some of the other parts of your past really get to me. I don`t know what a person I was falling for so hard. The one I got to know on the phone and e-mail, text and in person or the one who likes famous people.

UNIDENTIFIED REPORTER: He made the announcement he is taking an indefinite break from golf.

UNIDENTIFIED REPORTER: But after flying under the radar, Elin Woods finally spotted, running errands without her wedding ring. What`s it mean?

UNIDENTIFIED REPORTER: More alleged affairs, more alleged mistresses. A full blown Tiger Woods scandal.

UNIDENTIFIED REPORTER: Woods portraying himself as a dedicated family man.

BETHANY MARSHALL, PSYCHOANALYST, AUTHOR OF "DEALBREAKERS": I do not for one second believe he had real relationships with these women.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: We see that it`s the same pattern again and again where each person thinks that they`re the only one and that they`ll be the one with Tiger.

UNIDENTIFIED REPORTER: Tiger released a statement on his Web site admitting to infidelity and announcing an indefinite break from golf.

MIKE BROOKS, HLN LAW ENFORCEMENT ANALYST; FMR. D.C. POLICE DET., FBI TERRORISM TASK FORCE: His wife and his two little children, they`re the real victims in all of this.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

GRACE: To our chief editorial producer, Ellie Jostad. Ellie, what more can you tell me?

ELLIE JOSTAD, NANCY GRACE PRODUCER, COVERING STORY: At first, Nancy, we didn`t see much of Elin Nordegren. We weren`t hearing anything from her. You know, she`s reportedly been a very, very private person. I could find only one article ever written about her before this happened, any sort of profile.

However, just recently, she was seen without her wedding ring. Now, people that know this couple say they carefully crafted their public image and that Elin had been living like that since she was linked to Tiger Woods, you know, when they first started dating so she knows what she`s doing in public.

So when she went out there without that ring, that was seen as a sign, a sign to Tiger Woods and a sign to the public, that Elin Nordegren was not just going to take him back, forgive him, put this all behind her. That she may actually be planning to split from Tiger Woods.

Now, Kim Serafin, from "In Touch Weekly," what are you hearing? Does it look like divorce is on the horizon for them?

KIM SERAFIN, SENIOR EDITOR, "IN TOUCH WEEKLY": Yes. All the reports are saying that divorce is 100 percent for Elin. Now, apparently, also, these sources are saying that she doesn`t want to do it right away. She is not looking to rush into this because she wants to make sure that all the dirty laundry is out on the table before she would sign anything, but apparently divorce is 100 percent certain and the fact that she walked out without the wedding ring very carefully crafted.

You really didn`t see her after everything that happened and then she makes a public appearance going to get gas. Now clearly, Elin doesn`t need to go get gas herself. She could certainly have somebody do that for her. She knew the paparazzi were following her, she knew the media was following her, she very clearly showed that she had no wedding ring on.

The next day, did the same thing. Went out to lunch with her children. Also showed she was not wearing a wedding ring. That was clearly sending a signal. And this is for someone who is very private, who doesn`t normally get out there other than when she was appearing at Tiger`s matches.

She`s very private. She was a swim suit model, but understands how to use the media. Her mother is a politician. Her father is a radio broadcaster. She understands this and this was a clear message she was sending not wearing her ring.

JOSTAD: Well -- and Mark Williams, do you agree? Is this a message? I mean we know that Elin Nordegren could have -- if these things are all legitimate, could have ammunition. Now we`ve got these alleged text messages. There`s also e-mails from some of the -- you know, either Tiger Woods back and forth with these alleged mistresses.

What can you tell me about text messages and those kind of things?

MARK WILLIAMS, NEWS DIRECTOR, WNDB NEWSTALK 1150: There are something like 300 text messages he sent to -- allegedly sent to girlfriend number two. And also, along with a voice message to this individual saying, hey, how about taking your name off your voice -- your answering system that you have at the house because I think my wife is going to be calling you. And I don`t want your name on there.

And these text messages, my goodness gracious, they were racy. Some of the messages allege that he asked her to go into the bathroom and take pictures of herself. Scanty pictures of herself and then send them back via e-mail or text them back to him. This isn`t the public persona that we know Tiger Woods to be.

JOSTAD: Sue Moss, family law attorney, is this the kind of thing, I mean, text messages, voicemails, all that kind of stuff, is this something that Elin Nordegren can use as ammunition if they do end up in divorce court or fighting over custody?

SUSAN MOSS, FAMILY LAW ATTORNEY & CHILD ADVOCATE: Absolutely. It appears that no one could really hold this tiger. But the real issue is going to be where is this divorce going to take place? She`s now hired attorneys in California but I have a big bone to pick with all these attorneys.

I think the worst thing that she could do is to file in California. Because the big financial issue in this case is there -- is there any leeway to set aside the prenuptial agreement? Southern California is a place where they`re used to enforcing pre-nups. Every reality television star has a pre-nup and then in the California divorce courts, they`re used to enforcing them.

In Florida, there`s a little bit more leeway and possibly making an argument to set it aside at the very least to get a little bit more money out of Tiger.

JOSTAD: Well, and the reports were that when Tiger Woods and Elin Nordegren originally got married that she signed a deal that would be $20 million if she stayed married to him for 10 years. However, the reports started coming out that once she learned about these alleged affairs that she was meeting with attorneys and that she was actually trying to rewrite the language of that agreement and make a sweeter deal for herself.

Now the "Daily Beast" reported that she would get $5 million just to, you know, sign and then it would be a $55 million to her if she stayed for two years, $75 million if she stayed for another seven years.

Now, Sue Moss, how can you go back -- you know, after you`re already married, how can you go back and try to renegotiate the deal? Is that something that happens?

MOSS: Absolutely. We call them mid-nuptial agreements. Hey, nothing says "I love you" like sign here, money. And in this case we`re talking about a lot of money. But even if she gets divorced now, she`s going to get a lot more money than that pre-nup says because tiger is going to want to buy her silence. If she went out and wrote a book, we`d all read it and we`d all buy it. Tiger wants to make sure that never happens.

JOSTAD: Well, and Kim Serafin from "In Touch Weekly," do you think that that is going to happen? I mean how much money is at stake here, first of all?

SERAFIN: There is a reportedly $1 billion at stake. This is a lot of money at stake here and as you mentioned, you know, there is this pre-nup that she was supposed to have for 10 years, $20 million. Being exaggerated more, you know, there were reports initially that she would get $5 million to stay, up to $75 million.

Now it does not look like she`s going to stay. She also has been consulting reportedly with Sorrel Trope, the legendary divorce lawyer out in California, who`s handled lots of celebrity divorces, everyone from Carrie Grant and Nicole Kidman to Brittney Spears, reportedly. So this is a lot of money. That shows you that she is very serious because a lot of money is at stake.

JOSTAD: Well, and Mark Williams, let me ask you, have Tiger Woods and his wife been sharing a residence since this all happened or are they living apart?

WILLIAMS: I`ll tell you what. First off, with the money she could receive, you know, she couldn`t get this much money on "The Price is Right" with Drew Carey every day, you know? But they have been living apart from what we understand.

Tiger and his father Earl bought a house in the Isle Worth Subdivision many years ago before Earl passed on. And it was in both their names so from what we understand that`s where Tiger is living right now.

Elin is living in their $2.4 million home where -- just feet away from where this incident occurred on the night after thanksgiving.

JOSTAD: Well, and Tiger Woods reportedly also owns homes in Los Angeles, Jackson Hole, Wyoming, he has a place in Bahrain -- I`m sorry, rather, Dubai. He`s got an apartment in downtown Stockholm.

Elin Nordegren, we know, just bought a $2.2 million house for herself which is on an island, it sits on 59 acres, it`s a private island. You can only get there by ferry.

Now, Sue Moss, if this ends up in divorce court, are all of those assets going to be fought over or is that probably already negotiated with a pre-nup or post-nup?

MOSS: It depends. Chances are all of the assets were very well described in a prenuptial agreement and that`s what`s going to hold the day and that`s what`s going to create this financial settlement.

But what would not be covered in a prenuptial agreement is what happens with child support. In virtually every jurisdiction we do not allow you to contract for child support. So that`s where the real money fight is going to happen once we determine whether pre-nup is valid.

JOSTAD: Well, and Sue, you know, you brought up child support and custody. If Tiger Woods has been carrying on all these affairs and you know, we can`t independently confirm that ourselves, but if he has been doing that, is that going to come up in custody? Are they going to say he`s not fit to, you know, care for his children because he`s doing all these things on the side?

MOSS: Well, in most jurisdiction, what we look at was what did the children know? What was done in front of the children? As long as he was operating his affairs outside the presence of the children, then he -- it`s not going to probably affect custody too much.

JOSTAD: Hmm. All right. That`s good to hear, I guess.

Kim Serafin, though, how about the holidays? Are Tiger Woods and Elin Nordegren going to spend the holidays together or what`s going to happen now?

SERAFIN: Does not appear they will be spending the holidays together. Reports are that Elin is taking the children to Sweden and then other reports, they`re saying right now Tiger is possibly staying with a friend and possibly spending the holidays on his boat named "Privacy."

Other reports has been coming out that Tiger is spending his days watching cartoons, eating cereal, hitting golf balls at night, that his friends are apparently very worried about him, that he`s not handling this very well, and that he actually really wants to try to save the marriage if possible.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: What would you tell his wife Elin if she was sitting right here?

GRUBBS: I mean, I have no words to explain, you know, what I have done to her, her family. I guess I would be deeply sorry for never considering her during the whole process and not -- him not bringing her up was just a way for me to just pretend that he didn`t have one and for me not to deal with it.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

GRACE: Elin Nordegren has closed on a family mansion in her homeland on an island off the coast.

UNIDENTIFIED REPORTER: "The Enquirer" claims team Tiger is working hard to silence alleged mistresses.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Who`s going to come forward and say I`m having Tiger`s cub?

(END VIDEO CLIP)

GRACE: Straight out to Tom O`Neil, senior editor, "In Touch Weekly." Tonight on a legal front, DFACS, Department of Family and Children Services, reportedly showing up at Woods` multimillion dollar compound flanked by police. What happened?

O`NEIL: Well, they arrived with an Orange County sheriff to investigate this claim that we hear, Nancy, that involves an incident with a weapon. There are other reports that it may even have been a golf club. We don`t know. That`s unconfirmed. All they will say is that.

GRACE: Tom O`Neil.

O`NEIL: What?

GRACE: Put O`Neil back up. Tom O`Neil, in many aggravated assault, even murder cases, a weapon doesn`t have to be -- I mean, use your mind, Tom.

O`NEIL: Right, right, right.

GRACE: It doesn`t have to be a knife or a gun. A weapon could be a golf club. It could be fists. It could be feet. It could be a car.

O`NEIL: Right.

GRACE: Anything that is used as a weapon. Weapon-like can be deemed a weapon under the law. Please go ahead, Mr. O`Neil.

O`NEIL: Right. And this could also be a frivolous complaint. We don`t know that because the golf club accusation is what was at the heart of the thanksgiving blow-up that caused this whole thing. All we know is that the child services group is calling this a well-being check which is a case of where they go into the home. They separate the family members, talk to everybody and get their side of the story. We don`t know the full story, Nancy.

GRACE: OK. I`ve got a tiny problem with your scenario.

O`NEIL: OK.

GRACE: And it`s not your fault, Tom O`Neil with "In Touch Weekly." Let`s unleash the lawyers, Eleanor Odom, felony prosecutor out of the Atlanta jurisdiction, Jason Oshins, renowned defense attorney in the New York/New Jersey, and Peter Odom, prosecutor-turned-defense attorney, also in Atlanta.

Eleanor, if this is over the same incident, where allegedly someone is brandishing a golf club, aren`t they a day late and a dollar short?

ELEANOR ODOM, PROSECUTOR: It sure is because, Nancy, it`s crime, if you have an aggravated assault or some type of physical altercation and you do it in front of the children, that`s a crime in and of itself.

GRACE: Take a look at these shots we`re showing you. You see his wife Elin Nordegren without that huge, humongous diamond ring.

Peter Odom, with your experience in divorce law, that`s very typically the first sign of a divorce, people start taking off the rings.

PETER ODOM, DEFENSE ATTORNEY: Well, that`s true and they also -- we`re hearing rumors that they`re starting to buy a castle in Europe and make plans to move there so this very well could be the beginning of the end. And we`d known that for.

GRACE: Put Odom up. Peter Odom, they`re not starting to buy a castle in Europe. Elin Nordegren has closed on a family mansion in her homeland on an island.

P. ODOM: There you go.

GRACE: . off the coast.

P. ODOM: There you go. So this is certainly the beginning of the end.

GRACE: Now I don`t know if he -- I don`t know if he, Tiger Woods, is part of that purchase. But let`s go to Alexis Tereszcuk with Radaronline.com.

Alexis, what can you tell me about reports that moving vans have pulled up to the compound in Florida, packed up, left, now we see boxes being loaded on to Woods` multimillion dollar yacht "The Privacy"?

ALEXIS TERESZCUK, REPORTER, RADAROLINE.COM: Well, Nancy, that has happened. Moving van did pull up in front of Tiger`s home. They moved out lots of boxes. We didn`t see either Tiger or Elin but she does have the home. Tiger`s plane landed in Europe today in her home country of Sweden, and the boat seems to be moving things, too.

GRACE: To Ellie Jostad. Ellie, yet another woman has decided to go public and she goes on and on about all the pain, she`s worried about she`s causing the wife, Elin Nordegren.

JOSTAD: Right.

GRACE: Now why the heck did she go on the "Today" show to announce it if she`s so worried? Take a listen, Ellie.

JOSTAD: OK.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: What was he telling you?

CORI RIST, TIGER WOODS` ALLEGED MISTRESS: Just that his marriage was on the rocks and there was a baby on the way and he had to uphold this image and stick it out for now and things were not good at home.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: And what made you realize then that he wasn`t being true to his word that that wasn`t -- he wasn`t going to leave his wife?

RIST: The media. I started seeing them out in the pictures being printed and I just -- then I didn`t believe it and then I also would wake up in the night and he would be texting, you know, in the middle of the night and I would ask who he`s texting and he would say checking e-mails and I just had that feeling that this was something bigger.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: So you started realizing at that point, with the texts and everything, that perhaps he was having relationships with multiple women?

RIST: That`s correct. I`m not party girl that they`re claiming that I am. I do go out with my girlfriends and have fun, and -- you know, but I`m not like most of these girls.

And I`m not judging them by any means. You know, I`m not putting anybody down. But I`m a mom and I`m a stay-at-home mom, and I`ve worked hard, and I`ve tried to set the right example by my son.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Has this been hard for you and your son?

RIST: Yes.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: How? I mean, what is your son hearing?

RIST: Just all the horrible things -- I`m sorry. You know, he has to face a lot of -- he`s suffered a lot of consequences from this. And I`ve had to explain to him that`s the way it happens. You know, my family as well. I don`t think anybody wants to see their daughter or granddaughter in this situation.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Do you feel that you`re to blame for that?

RIST: Yes.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

GRACE: What about Elin`s family, lady? You`re the one that shacked up. That`s Tiger Woods` alleged mistress Cori Rist, crying on the NBC "Today" show.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

GRACE: Tiger Woods is taking a, quote, "indefinite break" from the sport of golf. I`m reading verbatim from the release by Tiger Woods.

"I am deeply aware the disappointment and hurt that my infidelity has caused so many people. Most of all my wife and children. I want to say again to everyone that I am profoundly sorry and I ask forgiveness.

It may not be possible to repair the damage I`ve done, but I want to do my best to try. I would like to ask everyone, fans, good people in my foundation, partners, PGA Tour, competitors for understanding. What`s important now is time for privacy and safe haven we need for healing.

After much soul searching, I have decided to take an indefinite break from professional golf. I need to focus my attention on being a better husband, father and person."

Straight back out to Kim Serafin, senior editor, "In Touch Weekly." How does it factor in with what you`ve learned, Kim?

SERAFIN: This is huge news, especially because there had been reports coming from both Sweden and here in the U.S. that both him and Elin were going to go to Sweden very soon to kind of work on their marriage. So this would imply especially because in the statement he`s talking about his family, he`s talking about his wife, his kids.

This would imply that he really does want to work on his marriage and divorce is maybe not the next option.

GRACE: What about it, Ellie Jostad?

JOSTAD: Nancy, you know, I`m looking back over Tiger Woods` previous statements. The first time, a couple of days after the accident, all he said was I got in this wreck, it was embarrassing. My wife acted courageously. You know, a few days later he admits transgressions without saying what those were. And then finally we`re hearing the first admission of any kind of infidelity.

GRACE: And to you, Alexis with Radaronline.com, what do you make of it? Is it for real?

TERESZCUK: I think it`s for real. And I think it`s amazing that he`s admitting what so many women have come forward and alleged that it wasn`t one woman, it wasn`t two. You know we think the number had been up to 13, so it`s very surprising and huge news that he is admitting these infidelities because we`ve had so many sources and so many women tell us that he did, in fact, have these affairs.

GRACE: Tonight, let`s stop and remember Marine Lance Corporal Christopher Cosgrove III, 23, Cedar Knolls, New Jersey, killed Iraq. Awarded the Purple Heart, National Defense Service Medal, Iraq Campaign Medal.

Lost his life just days before he was set to come home. A history buff, loved Marines, golf, sky diving, making people laugh, dreamed of being a cop. He leaves behind parents Charlene and Christopher, two brothers.

Christopher Cosgrove III, American hero.

Thank you to our guests but especially to you for being with us. And a special thank you to friend of the show, veteran New York defense attorney, Richard Herman for these Yankees outfits for the twins. We will not be wearing these to the Braves games.

Everyone, I`ll see you tomorrow night, 8:00 sharp Eastern. And until then, good night, friend.

END