Rachel Uchitel: Tiger Woods’ attorneys suing hostess for breaking NDA – who is she, and why is she famous?

The attorneys of golf star Tiger Woods have sued Rachel Uchitel for reportedly breaking an $8 million (£5.7 million) nondisclosure agreement (NDA) signed after it was claimed she’d had an affair with the then-married sportsman in 2009.

Woods was married to Elin Nordegren at the time, and Uchitel agreed – in a legal document thought to be more than 30 pages in length – to remain silent on the issue in exchange for the multi-million dollar payment.

It’s alleged that Uchitel broke the NDA by agreeing to be interviewed for the documentary Tiger – released in January this year – in which she broke her silence about her relationship with the golfer for the first time.

But who is Rachel Uchitel?

Here is everything you need to know about her.

Who is Rachel Uchitel?

Born in 1975 in Anchorage, Alaska to Robert N. Uchitel, the son of Maurice Uchitel (a restaurant and nightclub owner born in the Russian Empire), Uchitel is an American nightclub manager, hostess, and TV correspondent.

Uchitelf first encountered publicity when, following the 11 September attacks in 2001, a photo of her holding a picture of her then fiancé, who worked in the World Trade Centre, was circulated worldwide.

It was around this time when she began her career working in television and film, with a five-year stint as a producer in the Bloomberg News television division.

In 2005, Uchitel moved to Las Vegas to become a VIP hostess at the Tao nightclub in Las Vegas, a career move she would later describe as “random” and “a life-changing experience”.

“Two years later, I was back in New York to oversee VIP operations for all of their companies and venues, such as Stanton Social, Marquee, Tao Bistro, and Dune,” she told Black Book Magazine.

Uchitel ran the VIP section of "some of the most successful clubs in New York."

In 2010, she again made headlines when the National Enquirer published a story that alleged she had had an affair with golfing ace Tiger Woods at the Australian Masters, an allegation Uchitel denied.

Shortly after, Uchitel appeared in the fourth season of VH1 reality television program Celebrity Rehab with Dr. Drew, which documented notable persons being treated for substance abuse; in her case, she was treated for addictions to alcohol, opiates and benzodiazepine drugs.

What happened to Tiger Woods?

In March of this year, a car crash was the latest setback for Woods, hailed by many as the greatest player the game has known during a career which has also brought a record-tying 82 victories on the PGA Tour.

He remains one of the most recognisable sports figures in the world despite a reduced schedule in recent years as a result of nine previous surgeries.

Several of these procedures were to treat chronic back problems, though Woods also famously won the 2008 US Open with shredded knee ligaments and two stress fractures in his left leg.

His personal life imploded in 2009 when he was caught having multiple extramarital affairs, but he came back to win his 11th PGA Tour player of the year award later that year and return to world number one.

He was still at the beginning of an 11-year drought between major titles but after four back surgeries that kept him out of golf for the better part of two years, he won the US Masters in 2019 for the fifth time, amid highly emotional scenes at Augusta.

A message from the editor:

Thank you for reading. NationalWorld is a new national news brand, produced by a team of journalists, editors, video producers and designers who live and work across the UK. Find out more about who’s who in the team, and our editorial values. We want to start a community among our readers, so please follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram, and keep the conversation going.