So, it isn't bad enough that Tiger Woods ruined his marriage and soiled his squeaky-clean reputation. Apparently he cost his corporate sponsors $12 billion in stock value as well. According to a study conducted by UC Davis economics professors Victor Stango and Christopher Knittel, Tiger lost his sponsors a "collective $5 to $12 billion." This loss outpaces "several decades' worth of Tiger Woods' personal endorsement income."

The study examined the stock market returns during the 13 trading days after Tiger's car crash, a period concluding a week after Tiger's announcement of an indefinite leave of absent. The two economics professors then compared the returns for Tiger's sponsors during this 13-day period to those of the total stock market and each of the companies' closest competitor. Returns for the four years prior to the car accident were also taken into account in order to establish the stocks' historic performance.

Okay, so everyone is weighing on the Tiger Woods incident over the holiday weekend. As a "business of sports blogger," it's my turn to toss in my two cents. First things first, whatever you think happened early on Friday morning, Tiger has asked for privacy and respect, so I will not participate in the rumor-mongering taking place across the Internet.

What is interesting is that people are forgetting to look at what this could do for his biggest sponsor, Nike (NKE). Now, I am not saying that any stock trouble that Nike may experience is the fault of the little incident between (or involving) Tiger and Mrs. Tiger, but the company will be performing a bit of damage control, just as Tiger and crew have.

Cincinnati-based consumer products giant Procter & Gamble (NYSE: PG) reported fourth-quarter earnings this morning, topping the Street's expectations on earnings but missing on revenue.

As for earnings, P&G pulled in 80 cents per share in the fourth quarter, topping the consensus estimate by a penny. On the revenue front, PG made $18.66 billion in the fourth quarter, well short of the Street's expected $19.32 billion.

So, we are approaching the final semifinal match to set the men's Wimbledon finals. Americans will be rooting for Andy Roddick while Britain will be rooting for Andy Murray (a native Scotsman). The last time a Brit won Wimbledon was in 1936, when Fred Perry accomplished the feat. What is interesting is that Fred Perry is a sponsor of Andy Murray, and the company stands to make a pretty penny should Murray win Wimbledon. That said, the article I linked to by Darren Rovell brings up an interesting point - how much money is Fred Perry losing because Andy Murray wears Nike (NYSE: NKE) shoes?

Many of today's "investors" place their bets on the stock market's wheel of fortune. They hope that their number will come up. I have news for those stock players: the majority of their ranks are no longer true investors. They are gamblers, plain and simple.

Would those gamblers like a hot tip? Here's one in keeping with today's economic defeatist attitude. I suggest that they immediately dump shares they hold in anything that's associated with motor racing. The reasoning for my saying this is simple: NASCAR has a measurable carbon footprint.

Please understand that I'm playing the devil's advocate here. I myself have nothing against motor sports.

NASCAR has already made one move towards a green future by introducing a new hybrid pace car. However, that's not going to cut it for the peak oil crowd. Additionally, this week the government announced its disdain for corporate America, with the curt dismissal of Detroit executives by a Pelosi-led crowd. We must also consider that advertising money is drying up, and with that, may go some sponsorships. NASCAR is in dangerous waters, and I believe that the sharks are circling.