Just who is Tiger Woods, exactly? We may never know, but at least we have the science of handwriting analysis to give us an idea. Graphologist Susanne Shapiro looked at Tiger's autograph for us, and she found it very revealing.
"It's important to remember that a signature is how a person wants to be perceived by the public. It happens very often that a person's regular writing is completely different from the signature and reveals a different personality. In this case, the signature is more than just a scribble. There's a simplicity there. He wants to be understood."
"The entire name is written in a perfectly horizontal direction, almost as if there were an invisible line under it. It's rigid. This is probably due to his keen visual judgment and co-ordination, and here it suggests a certain level of calculation."
"The middle-zone letters are all nicely connected in a rounded, garlanded manner. It takes more time to connect letters in a rounded fashion than an angular one, and this is not often found in a signature. That shows a methodical and friendly approach to his everyday life and his work. An angry person would have jabby, angular connectors, more like a child's scribble. Tiger has warmth — calculated warmth. Also, the 'i' dot is way to the right. He's writing, and thinking, quickly. "
"Look at the 'g' and the 'o's. They're not closed like they should be. When you see open ovals, you can usually assume that the person likes to talk, and not necessarily in a straightforward manner. With criminals, we often see an open oval on the bottom of the letter. That's bad news. But that's not what we see here."
"The high upper zone indicates a high level of intelligence. It's very striving. The zone also speaks to the writer's superego. His upper zone is very straight and not loopy at all. It's rigid. Maybe he doesn't allow himself to have fun. Very often, people who consider themselves restrained have to loosen their chains and go the other way."
"The unusual formation of the 'W' has the last stroke pointing toward the left, which represents the past. In graphology, this direction is always analyzed as being past-oriented as long as the writing goes from left to right. Tiger is very past-oriented. That probably has to do with his father, though we don't know."
"On the other hand, the ending stroke of the 's' shows an energetic motion toward the right side of the paper, an orientation to the future. We call that horizontal energy. He's ambitious. He has a desire for perfection and success, and you can see it in the way he reaches out from the 's.' In addition, when you end a signature and pull the last letter to the right, is it always this straight? It usually goes a little up or even a little down. In his case, he's razor-sharp. It really does fit his professional personality to a T."
"The dramatic loop in the 'g' suggests physical well-being. Sometimes, a lower-zone loop looks like a moneybag. People who have those shapes in the lower zone are very often materialistic and money-hungry. His is not the shape of a moneybag. It's a very healthy-looking closed loop. It's sensual, and it indicates that, yes, he has a healthy sex drive."