Woods 'asleep at the wheel' of car before arrest

Former world No. 1 golfer Tiger Woods was asleep at the wheel of a stationary Mercedes-Benz vehicle on a Florida road and did not know where he was, according to a police report released yesterday, a day after his arrest on a charge of driving under the influence.

Woods had "extremely slow and slurred speech" after being awoken by a police officer, who found the car the golfer was driving stopped in the right lane of the roadway and still running.

Woods was heading south, away from his Jupiter Island home, before his arrest at about 3am (local time) on Monday, according to the report. It said Woods was cooperative but had a hard time walking and keeping his eyes open.

Woods, who underwent surgery last week to relieve lingering back pain, blamed an unexpected reaction to legal drugs for his arrest and apologised for the incident. Two breathalyser tests showed his blood alcohol content to be zero, according to the report.

"I didn't realise the mix of medications had affected me so strongly," he said. - REUTERS