In a sullen, purposeful tone, Tiger Woods expressed his deep regret for his infidelities and asked his close friends in a conference room for forgiveness Friday.

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With his mother in the front row but his wife, Elin Nordegren, not in the room, Woods said, “I have let you down. I have let my fans down. I ask you to find room in your heart to one day believe in me again.”

As expected, Woods apologized for his behavior in front of the camera as a starting point to moving on, purposefully staring into the camera to say, “I’m so sorry.”

Woods said he doesn’t know when he will return to golf, but “I don’t rule out that it will be this year,” as to indicate he’s taking time to fix his life.

He denounced talk of using performance-enhancing drugs or his wife committing domestic violence on Nov. 27 when his SUV crashed into a tree and a fire hydrant. He also added that he was raised a Buddhist and will rely on those religious principles moving forward.

Reconnecting with his wife will take more than words, Woods said.

“It will come from my behavior,” he said.

Woods said he will return to therapy Saturday. He had been undergoing sex addiction rehabilitation at a clinic in Hattiesburg, Miss., before taking a week off to visit with his wife and children.

“I stopped living by the core values I was taught to live upon,” he said.

Woods indicated that he and his wife have begun the process of talking through their relationship.

In additon to his mother Kutilda, the crowd included PGA Tour commissioner Tim Finchem and Notah Begay, his former roommate at Stanford. Woods told them he is “deeply sorry for my irresponsible and selfish behavior.”

Tiger and wife Elin have begun “the process of discussing the damage caused by my behavior.”

“What we say to each other will remain with the two of us,” Woods said. “I have a lot to atone for.”

Woods also made a reference to Buddhism, saying he was raised on Buddhist principles and will implement those principles moving forward.

It’s believed that Woods wrote the speech himself.

He also showed a glimpse of anger in his speech, clearly frustrated with his family’s treatment from the paparazzi.

Woods said media outlets have fabricated the truth and said it’s unacceptable for cameramen to follow his wife, mother and children.

“Please leave my wife and kids alone,” said Woods, who added he has brought this attention headache on himself.

Woods said his wife has displayed “enormous grace and poise” instead of any rumors of domestic violence.

Tiger Woods spent a segment of his 13-minute press conference talking about he had felt an entitlement and untouchable after years of hard work.

“I never thought about who I was hurting, I thought only about myself,” Woods said. “I had affairs. I cheated. What I did is not acceptable. And I am the only person to blame.” Woods said he convinced himself that “normal rules never applied” despite his upbringing to be a good husband.

“I thought I could get away with whatever I wanted to,” Woods said. “I felt I had worked hard my entire life and deserved to enjoy my temptations around me. I felt I was entitled. Thanks to money and fame, I didn’t have to go far to find them.”

Three wire services — AP, Reuters and Bloomberg — were invited to the briefing. The Golf Writers Association of America was offered a pool of three reporters. It negotiated for six reporters, then its board of directors voted not to participate.

“I cannot stress how strongly our board felt that this should be open to all media and also for the opportunity to question Woods,” said Vartan Kupelian, president of the 950-member group. “The position, simply put, is all or none. This is a major story of international scope. To limit the ability of journalists to attend, listen, see and question Woods goes against the grain of everything we believe.”

Since the mid-1990s, Woods has spent his life as an untouchable superstar. That is, until last Nov. 27, when his SUV crash outside his Isleworth home changed everything. The crash followed a National Enquirer story claiming he had been having an affair with New York City events planner Rachel Uchitel and led to hot news leads about more infidelity and reports of a dozen or so mistresses.

His reputation will never be the same. It remains to be seen if his golf game will.

Today, he decided to tell his story his way, in his environment, in his focused setting, as if it were just him and a 10-foot putt.

“He wants to begin the process of making amends, and that’s what he is going to discuss,” said a statement on his Web site.

The timing of Woods’ speech had put off many of his peers. Long-time pro Ernie Els called his timing “selfish” because it falls on the same day as the third round of the Accenture Match-Play Championship in Marana, Ariz. Accenture, oddly, was the first sponsor to drop Woods after his public relations disaster.

Associated Press contributed to this report.

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