To coincide with Tiger Woods’s return to golf at The Masters this weekend, Nike has released a new TV spot that touches on Tiger's recently-aired dirty laundry (heretofore referred to as "Tigergate" in this post).

Here's the spot:




We see Tiger (and two Nike logos). Tiger looks serious, somber, human.  The Nike logos manage to maintain their customary swooshiness. The voice we hear belongs to Earl Woods, Tiger's deceased father. It's a haunting use of archive audio to touch on the golfer's well-publicized marital infidelity.

I say "touch on" for a reason. There's nothing here that explicitly refers to Tigergate. But we're culturally aware viewers. We hear Earl Woods's sentiments—"I want to find out what your thinking was. I want to find out what your feelings are. And did you learn anything."— and we apply them to Tigergate. It's certainly the connection Nike wants us to make, but this commercial doesn't actually address the issue. It simply acknowledges it.

Ultimately, the ad talks a lot without actually saying anything. It creates an uncomfortable situation on screen with a controversial character, then sets us free to draw our own conclusions. And I'm sure that was the point. Tiger's return to the PGA and The Masters is buzzworthy, and Nike needs a slice of that buzz equity because Tiger Woods is Nike Golf.

This spot feels like a cheap shot, but it's probably the only move Nike had at this point. A commercial focusing on Tiger's athletic ability would've drawn far more criticism. Nothing Tiger or Nike did would've met with a warm reception. So they ignored Tiger's athletic ability and hinted at humility. These tactics aren't really part of the Nike marketing playbook, but Nike did what it had to to get its golf brand back on the radar. And based on the 2 million hits this particular YouTube video got, I'd say they succeeded.

The spot ends with the Nike swoosh, because this is one ad you can't end with "Just do it."