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Speculation reached fever pitch Friday ahead of the first public appearance by star golfer Tiger Woods since a slew of tawdry revelations that led to his stunning fall from grace.
The world's top golfer was slated to appear before a carefully chosen group of reporters for a tightly choreographed public statement.
Media trucks arrived at the site where the billionaire athlete was to speak the night before, but for all the attention it was unclear where Woods would be after the statement.
US PGA Tour commissioner Tim Finchem seemed to suggest that Woods was headed back to therapy. "I don't know what he's going to do after he finishes his rehab," Finchem said this week at the WGC-Accenture Match Play Championship in Arizona.
"In a vacuum we'd like him back as soon as possible -- but we want him back importantly when he's dealt with the issues he felt like he had to deal with."
There has been wild speculation about what Woods will say, with British bookmaker William Hill even issuing odds -- 4-to-7 that his wife, Elin, will be with him; 8-to-1 that he will announce a divorce; 12-to-1 that his wife is pregnant, and 100-to-1 that he will retire.
He has been photographed recently jogging and hitting golf balls, suggesting he is far from hanging up his golf shoes, but his future has been uncertain since November, when the married father-of-two crashed his car outside his Florida home, unleashing a scandal.
South African golfer Ernie Els told Golf Week magazine that Woods was "selfish" for taking attention away from a tournament.
