Nike might want to rethink that Tiger ad

If a good ad is one that grabs attention and stirs up controversy, the Nike commercial featuring Tiger Woods and the voice of the late Earl Woods is a stroke of genius.

On the other hand, if Nike thinks this will make the public think nice thoughts about its client and rush out to buy its products, the equipment giant is sadly mistaken. People will be talking about this ad, but they may be saying things that Nike and Tiger don't want to hear.

This is one creepy ad and not just because it's voiced by a dead man, whose words were obviously taken out of context. What it says is that Tiger Woods and Nike have no problem exploiting the golfer's late father to sell products and attempt to rehabilitate his image. And what it says about Tiger's sincerity in turning his life around isn't  clear.

The creepiest ad on TV ever was the one that used Martin Luther King's ``I have a dream" speech to push products. The Nike Tiger ad is easily as tasteless considering the events that preceded it.

As many missteps as the Tiger camp made following his public de-pantsing on that Florida driveway last fall, this one may be the worst.

Unless, of course, if he wins the Masters. Then, all will be forgotten and forgiven.

MASTERING AN APP: TSN has a winner in its Masters app for iPhones, iPads and IPod touch units. The  app, which features high-resolution live video of Masters action,  was first among free sports downloads on iTunes and in the top 10 among all free offerings.

The quality of the video and sound are incredible and make you wonder where this whole mobile thing is going.

This could be the start of something new and different for TSN. It experimented with a one-day live-video app for NHL trade deadline day and got 60,000 downloads. This one should surpass that, partly because it's good for four days and has more than talking heads.

It could hit big numbers Friday when the TSN app, along with the TSN website, shows both Mike Weir and Tiger Woods on the back nine.

``We're trying to gauge how much interest there is before we decide where to go with this," said TSN president Phil King. ``We're experimenting."

 If interest is high enough, it's possible TSN may add more apps and eventually start charging for them. 

King said TSN is looking at a Canadian Football League app to stream live games, as well as the world junior hockey championships and other sports offerings.

OTHER STUFF:  Thanks to the public broadcaster, The Score is getting in on the World Cup. The CBC and The Score announced a partnership Thursday that will give the latter access to extended highlights from the big soccer event, along with other content. The Score will start with a preview of the tournament, nightly highlight show and features. In addition, Cabral Richards will file his unique reports from South Africa, though it's anybody's guess how the locals and big-name soccer guys will react to his hands-on approach.  ... TSN has a couple of gripping broadcasts coming up. First, is the NHL draft lottery on Tuesday (8 p.m.) in which NHL exec Bill Daly draws lots (or is it jellybeans?) to decide which bad team gets first choice among the graduating juniors. It's also being carried live on Versus in the U.S. One thing is certain in this hockey-mad country: It will draw a good audience.  ... On May 2, TSN will carry the first two rounds of the Canadian Football League draft. That marks the third time the draft has been televised live if you include that early episode of The Simpsons. ... Best laugh of the day comes from www.eTrueSports.com, which spun this tale in its Sports Shorts: Calls emanating from homes carrying ESPN2 on their cable systems swamped narcolepsy prevention hotlines across the U.S. on Wednesday night. ESPN says no evidence to suggest network's new announcing team of Rick Sutcliffe and Nomar Garciaparra played any role in ``unfortunate uptick." ... CTV's W-5 has a heart-warming report Saturday (7 p.m.) on how a hockey program is changing lives in Toronto's tough Jane-Finch neighbourhood. If you can tear yourself away from the Leafs' latest meaningless game, it's worth a look.