What they said about Woods in 2013

“Could they have disqualified him? Probably. But you’ve got all the best rules heads together, and they said that they thought there was no intent to do anything (improper) and that two strokes was a strong enough penalty. And you move on.” – on Woods’ penalty for an improper drop on the 15th hole at the Masters (Getty Images)

“People say, ‘Should Tiger have withdrawn himself?’ I don’t think so at all. If Tiger did that, he’d be putting himself in a position of saying, ‘I’m above the rules.’ You accept the ruling, whether it’s good or bad for you.” – Nicklaus, on Woods’ penalty at the Masters (Getty Images)

“From what I can gather, he took an illegal drop, signed a scorecard and left the course. Under most circumstances, that would result in disqualification. … If the Rules of Golf are upheld, I believe he should have been disqualified.” – on Woods’ drop (Getty Images)

“To me, this doesn’t take any time or consideration. If he doesn’t disqualify himself, this will cast a dark shadow over the entire day of golf, over this entire event, but more importantly over his entire career, for the rest of his life.” – on Woods’ drop at No. 15 (Getty Images)

“I wouldn’t say that he didn’t see that I was ready, but you do have a feel when the other guy is going to hit. Right as I was in the top of the backswing, I think he must have pulled like a 5-wood or a 3-wood and obviously everybody started screaming. So that didn’t help very much. It’s unfortunate.” – blaming Tiger Woods after blocking a shot deep into the woods during The Players. (Getty Images)

“I’m not going to lie, he’s not my favorite guy to play with. He’s not the nicest guy on Tour.” – getting in one last shot at Woods after finishing the third round at The Players. When asked about not playing with Woods in the final round, Garcia responded, “We don’t enjoy each other’s company. You don’t need to be a rocket engineer to figure that out.” (Getty Images)

“That Tiger drop was really, really borderline. I can’t live with myself without saying that.” – Miller, on Tiger Woods’ drop on 14 during the final round of The Players. Woods went on to win the tournament. After consulting with playing partner Casey Wittenberg, Woods determined the point at which the ball last crossed the hazard – a point that some felt may have been closer to the hole than the true trajectory of the ball would have allowed. (Getty Images)

“There was so much about this win (in The Players) that was unique. It was all new. It was a new Tiger. And yet there was so much about this tournament that reminded me of the old Tiger. He was a tactician like he was at Hoylake in 2006 under Hank Haney. He broke this golf course down technically and clinically. He was relentless like he was in 2001, when eventually Vijay Singh broke down and made the mistake at 14. Today, it was Sergio Garcia at 17.” – on Woods’ second win at TPC Sawgrass (Getty Images)

“It was very impressive. The work he has put in is paying off. Besides the 14th hole, he played great golf, and he is looking really good for the future. It looks like he might get a major if he keeps doing what he is doing before the year is out.” – on Woods’ victory at The Players Championship (Getty Images)

“We will have him round every night. We will serve fried chicken.” – comment made during a European Tour awards dinner in London, after Garcia was asked whether he would invite Woods over for dinner at the U.S. Open (Getty Images)

“I apologize for any offense that may have been caused by my comment on stage during the European Tour Players’ Awards dinner. I answered a question that was clearly made towards me as a joke with a silly remark, but in no way was the comment meant in a racist manner.” – a statement released after Garcia’s initial comment (Getty Images)

“As soon as I left the dinner, I started getting a sick feeling in my body. ... I didn’t really sleep at all last night. I felt like my heart was going to come out of my body. I had this sick feeling all day.” – during a news conference at the BMW PGA Championship (Getty Images)

“I like fried chicken so I will be over for dinner. … I mean it’s all pretty interesting ... Sergio may have just got caught with his tongue, got a little tongue tied there. He may have taken it a little far. I know he feels bad about it. I feel like it will all be worked out.” – in response to Garcia’s comment (Getty Images)

“We know the connotation in the United States. We accept all races on the European Tour; we take it very strongly. Most of Sergio’s friends are colored athletes in the United States, and he is absolutely abject in his apology and we accepted it.” – the European Tour chief executive, discussing the Garcia incident with Sky Sports (Getty Images)

“I deeply regret using an inappropriate word in a live interview for Sky Sports for which I unreservedly apologize.” – a statement made after his initial comment (Getty Images)

“I’ve been told about it. … It’s unfortunate.’ – after hearing about O’Grady’s quote (Getty Images)

“I don’t know. It sounds like I was the bad guy here. I was the victim. I don’t have any regrets or anything.” – on his contentious exchanges with Woods at The Players (Getty Images)

‘We talked to (agent) Mark Steinberg, and he said that they are moving forward. … If I manage to talk to (Woods), perfect; if not, I’ll definitely see him at the U.S. Open and we can talk face-to-face.” – after his first round of the BMW PGA Championship (Getty Images) on his efforts to make amends with Woods (Getty Images)

‘It’ll all blow over. … Those boys will be fine.’ – Sixteen years ago, Zoeller was mired in similar controversy after comments made about Woods at the 1997 Masters (Getty Images)

“It’s a mountain out of a molehill, to be honest, totally. … We’re all frightened to say anything; we’re frightened to open our mouths in case we say something that isn’t kosher in 2013. Somebody should tell us what to say because no one is quite sure what is right and wrong.” – coming to the defense of friend and long-time European Ryder Cup teammate Garcia (Getty Images)

“I think there’s no doubt there’s a personality clash between the two and both have spoken about that. Sergio apologized for his comments; he didn’t mean them in the way they came out. For me, it’s no big drama at all.” – the European Ryder Cup captain (Getty Images)

''The Sergio-Tiger thing, I mean, it’s stupid. Do guys have an issue one with another? They usually resolve it themselves. You guys want to resolve it in the newspapers today. Nobody needs that. And I think they both finally said, ‘It’s enough. Forget it, guys. Let’s move on.’ In our days, I suppose there were times when you had an issue with somebody and it came about. You never read about it.’' (Getty Images)

‘Right now as far as ball-striking is concerned, I don’t see how it gets any better than Tiger. I think he’s going to win the Masters and the (British) Open. I’m picking him for the Open because he’s not going to need a driver there and that’s where he has some problems.’ – assessing the state of Woods’ game and his outlook for the season (Getty Images)

‘How can you pick anybody but Tiger Woods in the U.S. Open? The intimidation factor is creeping back in for sure. Especially when he gets on the lead. There’s nobody that can close like Tiger Woods. Everybody knows that.’ – Woods’ former swing coach, on who he thinks will win the U.S. Open at Merion Golf Club (Getty Images)

“I absolutely believe he will. I’ve learned in my career – and I’ve played through his prime the whole time, which has been hard because he was so dominant – but I never doubt what he’s capable of on a golf course. He’s just proven us all wrong so many times if you doubt him, and he’ll find a way to do it, for sure. I believe that.” – to “CBS This Morning,” on whether he thinks Woods will break Jack Nicklaus’ record of 18 major championships (Getty Images)

“This one will raise a few more eyebrows among the players, that’s all I’m gonna say.” – Miller, on NBC, commenting on Tiger Woods’ two-shot penalty at the BMW Championship. It was just the latest controversial ruling for Woods in a season filled with rules infractions. (Getty Images)

“I figured this guy was the perfect Carlton.” – on Presidents Cup playing partner Tiger Woods and their ‘Fresh Prince of Bel-Air’ handshake routine. The Woods-Kuchar duo went 3-1 and Tiger delivered the winning point in Sunday singles to lift the Americans over the Internationals. (Getty Images)

“He won five times and contended in majors and won the Vardon Trophy. And how shall we say this ... was a little cavalier with the rules.” – commenting on Woods’ season in a column for Golf.com. Chamblee later apologized and resigned from his position at Golf.com amid criticism for accusing Woods of cheating, without knowing his intent. (Getty Images)

“There’s nothing you can call a golfer worse than a cheater. This is the most deplorable thing I have seen. I’m not one for hyperbole, but this is absolutely disgusting. Calling him a cheater? I’ll be shocked, stunned if something is not done about this. Something has to be done. Cheating involves intent.” – Woods’ agent, reacting to Brandel Chamblee’s grade of Woods’ season. Chamblee gave Woods and ‘F’ for being ‘a little cavalier with the rules.’ (Getty Images)

“(If) Tiger would give open answers to questions – ‘real’ interviews, not just ‘nothing’ interviews… Journalists and broadcasters should not be mere cheerleaders. There’s too much of that in golf right now, to be honest. And not nearly enough untainted honesty. If correspondents do nothing more than claim how great everything is, any semblance of reality is lost.” – in a column appearing in Golf World magazine on how he believes the Tiger Woods-Brandel Chamblee situation could have been avoided (Getty Images)

“Wherever he’s around, we’re living in a fishbowl. I didn’t quite know what I was getting myself into. It’s weird. But it’s just something I have to deal with. He has his job, and I have mine. I just have to get used to it.” – Vonn, to The New York Times, on her relationship with boyfriend Woods (Getty Images)