IT first to abandon Tiger Woods sponsorship

Of the countless companies sponsoring Tiger Woods these days, you'd think a global outsourcing company would find revelations of the golfer's allegedly numerous extramarital affairs the least incongruous with its corporate image.

Alas, such self-reflective logic has little place in these matters. The technology services and outsourcing firm, Accenture, has become the first of Woods' sponsors to dump him completely in the wake of his hot, steamy sex controversy.

Accenture (inadvertently) explains why it's ditching Tiger Woods

Woods has represented Accenture in print adverts as its "world symbol of ultimate high performance" for the past six years. But on Sunday, the company issued a brief statement saying the man is no longer the right metaphor for the job:

Given the circumstances of the last two weeks, after careful consideration and analysis, the company has determined that he is no longer the right representation for its advertising. Accenture said that it wishes only the best for Tiger Woods and his family.

The company said it will "immediately" transition to a new Woods-less advertising campaign, launching later in 2010. Apparently, Accenture thinks a Tiger Woods connection would leave an easy opening for desperate hacks to poke fun at.

Not everyone has a case of mourning Woods, however. Nike — the shoe folks — indicated it intends to ride out the storm until something like a kid getting stuck in a balloon or a pretty white girl being kidnapped inevitably steers US public attention elsewhere. Other hawksters like Gillette plan to phase out Woods propaganda while he takes a break from golf. ®