Officials have said drugs and alcohol not a factor in accident but speeding was.
Tiger Woods was driving at speeds up to 87mph (140km/h) in a 45mph zone when he was involved in a car crash in February this year, Los Angeles police said during a press conference on Wednesday.
Los Angeles County Sheriff Alex Villanueva said the speed was “unsafe for the road conditions” and Woods did not brake in the run-up to the crash, maybe because he pressed the accelerator in place of the brake pedal in a state of panic. Villanueva added Woods will not receive a citation over the crash and blamed the crash of Woods’s excessive speed and loss of control of the car.
The golfer sustained serious leg injuries in the single-vehicle accident, which took place in February when he drove over the median, into the opposite lane, struck a tree, and rolled the vehicle several times. Police said Woods’s car was moving fast at 75mph when it struck the tree. The stretch of road in Los Angeles County is known for vehicle accidents and police said Woods was “very fortunate” to be alive.
The Los Angeles County sheriff’s department said last month that it had figured out the cause of the crash but would not release details of the crash, due to privacy concerns. Wednesday’s release of details were made after Woods granted permission, Villanueva said.
The sheriff’s department has said before too that drugs and alcohol were not factors in the crash and Woods seemed to be sober when officers attended the site of the car crash. On Wednesday, Villanueva said a search warrant could only have been obtained for Wood’s blood samples if he had appeared to be in a state of impairment. He also rejects the claims that Woods had received preferential treatment because of his fame and said there was no proof that Woods was using his phone at the time of the crash.
On Tuesday, Woods’s friend Rory McIlroy said he had visited his Woods at home and he appeared to be making a recovery.
