Tiger’s Apology Present

Well, by all unfortunate accounts, it appears that Tiger Woods might be making a disgraceful appearance on Santa’s naughty list this year. And while we agree that it is certainly not haute to jump onto the gossip bandwagon, we did have some clever ideas of how our favorite golf champion could begin to repair some of the damage caused by his alleged transgressions. What better way to let the healing begin than by adhering to the adage that diamonds are a girl’s best friend. It seemed to work wonders for Kobe, so, dear Tiger, may we offer up these recommendations?

Graff Pink Diamond Ring: $10.8 million

Depending on just how bad of a boy Tiger believes that he has been, he might start by considering the rare vivid pink diamond by Graff. This five-carat stone, flanked by two white diamonds, just set a record at auction in Hong Kong at the start of December. While insiders were predicting it would go for $8 million, the behind-the-scenes bidding war drove up the price, setting a world record at $2.1 million per carat. The winning bid was placed by an anonymous Asian buyer who conveyed interest via telephone through a representative at Christie’s. The previous auction record for a pink diamond was set back in 1994 for a 19-carat, rectangular stone which sold for $7.4 million. Again, we ask, “what recession?”

Chopard Blue Diamond Ring: $16.26 million

Considering that the Graff vivid pink diamond has just found a new home, we doubt the anonymous owner is ready to give it up right away. With that in mind, Tiger might move on to Plan B. And even though Kobe only spent approximately $4 million on his apology piece (an 8-carat purple diamond ring) to wife Vanessa, that doesn’t mean that Tiger can’t up the ante. For damage control of this magnitude, might we suggest the blue diamond ring from Chopard? Blue diamonds are some of the rarest in the variety of naturally colored gems, partially explaining the multimillion-dollar price tag. It is oval in shape with triangular-shaped diamond shoulders and a pave-set diamond band in 18-carat white gold. At $1.7 million per carat, only Tiger knows how much his rumored transgressions are worth.

Harry Winston Diamond Drop Earrings: $8.5 million

But perhaps we are being a bit too jaded. Only Tiger and his blond beauty of a wife, Elin Nordegren, know if he can worm his way back into her good graces for less than $10 million. If so, we wouldn’t settle for anything less than the diamond drop earrings the “jeweler to the stars” created for the 2006 Oscar Awards. The glittering ear accessories would certainly serve as the perfect complement to Elin’s golden locks, and at 60 carats in a platinum setting, Harry Winston’s pear shaped bling might be the perfect way to say,  “I’m sorry.”

Tiffany’s Novo Yellow Diamond Ring: $1.35 million

But we all know that nothing says, “I’m sorry,” better than a little blue box. With Tiger’s budget, the size of the box may not matter, but the carat weight inside certainly does. So we wouldn’t be surprised to spot him strolling down Rodeo Drive, Madison Avenue, or perhaps somewhat closer to home, jaunting through Bal Harbour, to pick up the 25.27-carat novo yellow diamond ring from Tiffany & Co., set in platinum and yellow gold.

Cartier Art Deco Diamond Earrings: $70,000

Opting to give Tiger a small benefit of the doubt, perhaps he is not entangled in a philandering escapade that has rocked the world of golf and disappointed hordes of young, impressionable fans. Maybe he just needs to apologize to Elin for all the bad press. If that is the case, he might still have a chance to snatch up the Cartier diamond earrings that sold at auction for $70,000. Like the Graff pink diamond ring, the Art Deco onyx and diamond earrings from Cartier found a new home in November at a New York auction. Although it might be a bit gauche of Tiger to offer this particular set of jewels to his tormented wife, considering they used to belong to a similarly disgraced public figure, Mrs. Bernie Madoff. The Cartier earrings were part of a government auction of the Madoffs’ prized possessions and offered a pre-sale estimate of approximately $9,800.