by Christine Zibas

Created on: March 21, 2013

For those who admire sports champions, it seems a match made in heaven; for those who are less convinced that Woods can remain faithful, it seems more like the recent match-up between two singers (think John Mayer and Katy Perry), doomed for a split.

For now, having denied rumors swirling around for the past two months, the relationship is Facebook official. Golf phenom Tiger Woods and Olympian ski champ Lindsey Vonn are dating, according to

ESPN and many, many others.

How the couple sees the relationship

According to Golf Pro Tiger Woods, “Something nice that’s happened off the course was meeting Lindsey Vonn. Lindsey and I have been friends for some time, but over the last few months we have become very close and are now dating.” For her part, the newly divorced Vonn said about Woods, “I guess it wasn’t a well-kept secret but yes, I am dating Tiger Woods. Our relationship evolved from a friendship into something more over these past few months, and it has made me very happy.”

The couple also posted several studio photos, perhaps in an attempt to get ahead of the paparazzi who would be vying for the first photo of the newly “outed” couple. They also suggested that everything else would remain private. (Good luck with that.) It seems likely that the only “Privacy” the couple is likely to enjoy is Tiger Woods’ yacht, named such.

What they have in common

In addition to the fact that each is divorced, what the couples seem to have most in common is their athletic drive. According to ESPN, “Along with his 14 majors, Woods has won 17 times in the World Golf Championships (no one else has won more than three), and after Bay Hill he will have the record for most weeks (789) in the top 10 of the world ranking dating to 1986.” He has had a good season of golf so far, given his success at the Cadillac Championship at Doral, as well as at Torrey Pines.

Lindsey Vonn is equally accomplished in her sport. She has won 4 overall World Cup titles and 59 World Cup races (just three shy of the record), along with Bronze and Gold medals from the 2010 Olympics and is set to compete in Sochi next year. She was the 2010 Female Athlete of the Year for AP, the only skier, man or woman, to have done so since 1931. So confident is Vonn in her own ability that she petitioned the International Ski Federation to let her compete against men in the downhill race. (She was denied.)

Most recently, Vonn is recovering from a horrible ski accident that left her with two torn knee ligaments and a broken bone in her lower right leg. Surgery is something Woods can relate to, having undergone no less than four surgeries himself to repair his left knee.

As a couple, they can celebrate their victories, and commiserate about the pain they suffer to get there. They both understand what living in the spotlight is all about. Yet, the ultimate question (put so elegantly by ABC News) remains, “Can a tiger change his stripes?”

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