EmailPrintA Florida judge on Wednesday granted Tiger Woods' request to travel outside the U.S. and enter a comprehensive inpatient treatment facility, according to court records.Woods' attorney, Douglas Duncan, made the motion to travel Wednesday, citing the golfer's urgent need for an "intensive, highly individualized and medically integrated program" and privacy from media and public scrutiny.Martin County Court Judge Darren Steele granted the motion following a teleconference with Duncan and Assistant State Attorney Caroline Houston on Wednesday."Based upon the Defendant's treating physician, the out of country treatment facility recommendation is based upon the Defendant's complex clinical presentation and the urgent need for a level of care that cannot safely or effectively be done within the United States, as his privacy has been repeatedly compromised," Duncan wrote in the motion."Ongoing medical scrutiny and public exposure create significant barriers to his care and would result in setbacks and an inability to fully engage in treatment."On Tuesday, the 15-time major champion said in a statement that he is "stepping away for a period of time to seek treatment and focus on my health," announcing the decision four days after he was arrested on suspicion of DUI and refusal to submit to a lawful test stemming from a rollover car crash in Florida.Woods entered a not guilty plea to the misdemeanor charges Tuesday."I know and understand the seriousness of the situation I find myself in today," Woods said in a statement posted to his social media accounts. "I am stepping away for a period of time to seek treatment and focus on my health. This is necessary in order for me to prioritize my well-being and work toward lasting recovery."I'm committed to taking the time needed to return to a healthier, stronger, and more focused place, both personally and professionally. I appreciate your understanding and support, and ask for privacy for my family, loved ones and myself at this time."In the motion to travel, Duncan wrote that the unidentified treatment facility outside the U.S. will "provide continuous monitoring and the ability to rapidly adjust treatment intervention in a highly controlled environment."In an arrest affidavit released Tuesday by the Martin County Sheriff's Department, Deputy Tatiana Levenar wrote in an arrest affidavit that Woods was "sweating profusely" and that his movement was "lethargic and slow" while she interviewed him.Levenar wrote that Woods told her he had had seven back surgeries and more than 20 operations on his right leg, which he severely injured in a car crash outside Los Angeles in February 2021.Once Woods removed his sunglasses, Levenar noted that his eyes were "bloodshot and glassy" and his pupils were "extremely dilated." The deputy asked Woods if he had consumed any alcohol, and he replied: "None."When Levenar asked if Woods had taken any prescription medication, he stated: "I take a few." Woods said he had taken prescription pills earlier in the morning, according to the report.The names of the medications were redacted in the affidavit.Another Martin County sheriff's deputy found two hydrocodone pills in Woods' left pants pocket, according to the arrest affidavit. Hydrocodone was the drug found in Woods' system when he was arrested on DUI charges in May 2017.Duncan represented Woods in a 2017 case in which the golfer was arrested on suspicion of DUI after police officers found him asleep at the wheel in his running car, which had two flat tires and damage on the front and rear bumpers. Woods said he had taken a bad mix of painkillers.Woods later pleaded guilty to reckless driving and agreed to enter a diversion program as part of the plea deal. Woods checked into a treatment facility that year to get help with prescription drugs.In February 2021, Woods suffered significant leg injuries in a one-car crash outside of Los Angeles in which his SUV rolled several times and left him trapped inside. He later had surgery to deal with "open fractures" to his lower right leg, had a rod placed in a tibia, and had screws and pins inserted in his foot and ankle during emergency surgery. Woods was hospitalized for three weeks following the surgery.
