According to some news reports at the time, "sources" at the courthouse said that both Elin Nordegren and Tiger Woods were present when the divorce judgment was was entered by the court.
Elin and Tiger issued a joint statement through their lawyers:
"We are sad that our marriage is over and we wish each other the very best for the future. While we are no longer married, we are the parents of two wonderful children and their happiness has been, and will always be, of paramount importance to both of us. Once we came to the decision that our marriage was at an end, the primary focus of our amicable discussions has been to ensure their future well-being. The weeks and months ahead will not be easy for them as we adjust to a new family situation, which is why our privacy must be a principal concern."The Tiger Woods divorce ended nearly nine months of scandal, intrigue and gossip, along with a few public mea culpas by Woods.
In late November 2009, Woods crashed his SUV into a neighbor's tree in the wee hours of the night. The next day, the gossip rag National Enquirer published allegations of an affair by Woods. In the aftermath of the car accident, those affair rumors quickly went mainstream - and quickly, more women came forth to claim affairs with Woods, or were brought forth by other publications digging for dirt.
Apparently, there was plenty of dirt to find on Woods. On Dec. 2, 2009, Woods posted on his Web site an acknowledgement of "transgressions" and "personal sins" and apologized.
In December 2009, into February 2010, Woods spent time at a rehabilitation facility in Mississippi. Although it was never publicly stated by Woods that the counseling he was receiving was for sexual addition, that was the background the rehab facility's founder, and that was everybody's assumption.
Woods and Nordegren were also believed to be seeing a marriage counselor in Arizona at points in 2010.
So perhaps the Tiger Woods divorce wasn't an absolute certainty at all times between November 2009 and Aug. 23, 2010 - but it was certainly, given the infidelities Woods acknowledged, and the tawdriness of all the rumors and allegations, the likely outcome all along.
On Feb. 19, 2010, Woods made his first public appearance since the car accident, issuing a lengthy apology.
And finally, on Aug. 23, 2010, the Elin Nordegren and Tiger Woods divorce became official.
Nordegren was represented during the proceedings by the law firm of McGuireWoods LLP (in whose London office her twin sister Josefin worked); Woods was represented by Sasser, Cestero and Sasser P.A.
How were the couple's assets divided? See Tiger Woods divorce settlement for what is known about that.
(More of the background details about what led to the divorce can be found on the Tiger Woods scandals page.)
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