Tiger Woods’ bizarre Nov. 27 car accident has brought his troubled marriage and seemingly multiple affairs to light. The fact that the world’s greatest golf player — an international sports hero and a family man with a squeaky clean image — also cheated on his wife has come as a shock to a lot of people.

But, as it turns out, seems Tiger’s just like most of the rest of them.

According to a CNN report earlier this year — when former NFL star Steve McNair was shot to death by his 20-year-old mistress — 80 to 90 per cent of pro athletes cheat on their wives. And, after interviewing 47 wives of professional athletes, Steven M. Ortiz, an assistant professor of sociology at Oregon State University concluded that a “culture of adultery” permeates professional sports today and that there is “a fast-food-sex mentality among professional athletes.”

As with rock stars and politicians, the money, power and fame combined with the fact that you’re constantly on the road without your wife and surrounded by admirers is a strong aphrodisiac that can make “because you can” a good enough reason to cheat.

“There is certainly a different code for athletes than there is for the average guy,” says Montreal sportscaster Mitch Melnick. “It’s not necessarily that athlete’s are hornier, they just have more opportunity and access to sex.”

Michael Landsberg, host of TSN’s Off the Record once told me that “professional athletes don’t even have to try, they can be devoid of any charisma, they can look bad, even smell bad and there will be women who will leave with them.”

But, as far as I’m concerned, the athletes aren’t the only part of the “culture of adultery” that stinks.

In a feature for GQ magazine in 2006, Lisa DePaulo hung out with sports groupies and discovered that, “Gutter Groupies wait in parking lots after games and are happy just to give oral sex to an athlete (heck, even a bodyguard will do) while Fly Girls have something more going on.

They are just classy enough to often merit oral sex a second time. Sometimes there is jewelry involved.”

And what of the wives? I’m sure — for some of the very reasons above — that being married to a pro-athlete is no picnic. But are they merely innocent bystanders? It’s been reported that Tiger’s wife is being offered a big chunk of change to stick with him in order to maintain his good-guy public image.

I can only imagine what that must feel like.

Um, I’d like you meet my damage control, I mean my wife. 

Frankly, it all smells pretty rotten to me.  

– Josey Vogels is a sex and relationship columnist and author of five books on the subjects. For more info, visit www.joseyvogels.com.