INQUIRER Sports

WASHINGTON ? Tiger Woods' mother-in-law is in a stable condition after being rushed to hospital in an ambulance overnight Tuesday in the latest twist in the scandal surrounding the embattled golf star.

After a 911 call at approximately 2:30 am, television footage showed a middle-aged woman, later confirmed to be Barbro Holmberg, the mother of Woods' wife Elin Nordegren, being taken by stretcher into hospital.

"She was admitted for stomach discomfort," said spokesman Dan Yates from the Health Central Hospital, near the Woods family home outside Orlando, Florida.

"All we can share is she is in stable condition and we're evaluating her now," Yates told MSNBC news. "We shall be continuing to evaluate her throughout the day and we'll move on from there."

The dramatic development came with the Woods family engulfed by a media storm after the emergence of alleged extramarital affairs between the 14-time major winner and a string of women.

Woods has yet to be seen in public since he crashed his car in strange circumstances in the early morning of November 27 outside the Florida mansion where he lives with his wife and their two children.

Tabloid reports following the accident have linked Woods to as many as 10 women, prompting him to issue a statement apologizing to his family in a scandal that may have irreparably tarnished his lucrative brand.

There were reports that Nordegren moved out of their Florida home following the storm of gossip surrounding Woods. She was thought to have visited her mother in hospital, according to US television media.