Tiger Woods gets five-year driving ban and fine after entering car crash plea deal

Tiger Woods has entered a plea agreement to charges stemming from a car crash in Florida.

The 15-time major golf champion was arrested after his car rolled over in a collision with a pick-up truck on Jupiter Island in March.

Woods walked away unhurt from the crash, escaping out of his passenger door, and while he passed a breathalyser test for alcohol, he refused to submit to a urinary test for drugs.

The 50-year-old had previously entered a plea of not guilty through his lawyers to charges of driving under the influence, property damage and a refusal to submit to testing.

According to a police affidavit, Woods was observed by the investigating officers to be "sweating profusely" while acting "lethargic and slow" with eyes that were "bloodshot and glassy".

He admitted he "was looking down at his cell phone and changing the radio station" in the moments before the crash, and "did not notice the vehicle in front of him had slowed down".

Woods appeared at Martin County Courthouse in Stuart, Florida, for a hearing on Wednesday. He was accompanied by his girlfriend, Vanessa Trump - the ex-wife of Donald Trump Jr.

He pleaded no contest to the lesser charge of reckless driving.

Judge Darren Steele accepted the plea agreement, which amended the original DUI charge and also resolved the refusal to submit a test charge with a no contest plea. Woods also entered the same plea to a careless driving citation.

Thomas Bakkedahl, the state attorney for Martin County, said afterwards that the no contest plea was "effectively the same" as a guilty plea.

On the reckless driving charge, Woods received a $1,000 (£740) fine and a five-year driving suspension.

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On the second count, the refusal to submit to a lawful test, he received a $500 fine.

On the careless driving citation, he was ordered to pay the minimum fine, which also carries a five-year driving ban to run concurrently with the suspension on the reckless driving charge.

Mr Bakkendahl, in a news conference after the hearing, said prosecutors agreed to the plea deal because toxicologists found that Woods had a "tolerance" to a painkiller medicine he was taking and, as a result, it was potentially impossible to prove he was impaired.

Woods has undergone at least seven back surgeries and multiple procedures on his knees, legs, and ankles throughout his career.

Sky News

(c) Sky News 2026: Tiger Woods gets five-year driving ban and fine after entering car crash plea deal<

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