Tiger Woods Called Trump from the Crash Scene, Then Got Arrested for DUI — The Full Timeline of His Worst Week

## The Crash, the Call, and the Arrest On March 27, 2026, at approximately 7 PM in Jupiter Island, Florida, Tiger Woods rolled his vehicle near his home. The accident was a single-car incident; no other vehicle was involved and no other person was injured. Martin County Sheriff's deputies responded to the scene and fou

On March 27, 2026, at approximately 7 PM in Jupiter Island, Florida, Tiger Woods rolled his vehicle near his home. The accident was a single-car incident; no other vehicle was involved and no other person was injured. Martin County Sheriff's deputies responded to the scene and found Woods present.

What happened in the minutes between the crash and Woods's arrest has been documented in unusual detail because of body camera footage obtained and published by TMZ. The footage shows Woods at the crash scene, walking, at one point moving away from where officers had asked him to remain, then returning when called back. As he walked back to the officers, he could be heard saying: "Thank you so much. All right. You got it. Bye." When the officer spoke to him, Woods said: "I was just talking with the President."

The President in question was Donald Trump. Woods and Trump have a long-established friendship built around golf — Trump has spoken publicly about their rounds together numerous times, and Woods has been to the White House and Mar-a-Lago. Woods is also in a relationship with Vanessa Trump, Donald Trump Jr.'s ex-wife, adding another layer to his connection with the Trump family. Trump commented on the crash from a tarmac before news of the arrest broke: "I feel so badly. He's got some difficulty. He's an amazing person, amazing man, but some difficulty."

Deputy Tatiana Levenar conducted a roadside sobriety test and told Woods: "I do believe your normal faculties are impaired, and you're under an unknown substance, so at this time you're under arrest for DUI." After handcuffing Woods, officers found two white pills in his pockets. Woods identified them: "That's a Norco" — a reference to a painkiller containing acetaminophen and hydrocodone. He said he had not drunk alcohol and had taken "a few" medications earlier in the day. At the DUI processing facility, he maintained: "I'm not drunk."

Woods was charged with two misdemeanors — driving under the influence and possession — and pleaded not guilty. This was his second DUI arrest; the first occurred in 2017 when officers found him asleep at the wheel with multiple prescription medications in his system.

The golf world's reaction to the news combined genuine concern with a complicated acknowledgment that this was not the first time Woods had faced this specific crisis. His 2017 DUI had been followed by back surgery, rehabilitation, and the extraordinary athletic comeback that produced his 2019 Masters victory — one of the most celebrated sports returns in recent memory. That arc — crisis, treatment, transcendence — had given Woods a particular narrative resilience. When 2026's arrest occurred, many observers wondered whether the same arc could play out twice.

Woods withdrew from the 2026 Masters before that tournament began, ending speculation that had run for weeks about whether he would compete. He released a statement: "I am stepping away for a period of time to seek treatment and focus on my health. This is necessary in order for me to prioritize my well-being and work toward lasting recovery. I appreciate your understanding and support, and ask for privacy for my family, loved ones and myself at this time."

The withdrawal itself was significant. The Masters is the tournament that defines Woods's legacy as perhaps no other does — he has won it five times, and his 2019 return victory there is one of professional sport's most iconic moments. Choosing to miss it to seek treatment reflected the seriousness with which he was approaching his situation.

Multiple sources described Woods as "ashamed" following the arrest. People magazine reported that he felt significant embarrassment specifically because of the public dimension of the incident — the body camera footage, the Trump phone call detail, the tabloid coverage of the arrest.

Woods entered a rehabilitation facility in Switzerland in the weeks following the arrest. The choice of a Swiss facility reflects both the quality of specific treatment programs available there and the practical benefit of distance from the American media environment that would otherwise follow every aspect of his treatment in ways that complicate recovery. Prior to checking in, Vanessa Trump posted to her Instagram Stories a photograph of the two of them together with the caption "Love you," a public gesture of support that was widely noted.

The SNL cold open on April 11 — in which Kenan Thompson played Woods calling Trump from rehab — captured something of the way the story had settled in public consciousness as simultaneously tragic and darkly comedic. Thompson's Woods explaining to Johnson's Trump that he had told police they were friends and been arrested anyway, with Trump responding "If only there was something I could have done" before hanging up, landed because it captured the specific absurdity of the Trump-call detail without requiring amplification.

Woods has pleaded not guilty. His legal case remains active. His golf career is on hold pending the outcome of his treatment. At 50 years old, with a body that has been through multiple serious accidents and multiple surgeries, the question of whether he will compete in professional golf again is not one that has a clear answer. What is clear is that he has chosen, for the second time in his career, to address the underlying issues rather than continue through them, and that the people close to him — including his girlfriend and, apparently, the President of the United States — are supporting that decision.