When it comes to disappointment, John Edwards tops Tiger Woods.

Edwards, a former vice presidential candidate and U.S. senator who grew up in Robbins, also beat the likes of David Letterman, Chris Brown, Jon and Kate Gosselin and Alex Rodriguez.

Disappointment in public figures was the subject of a national survey conducted by NBC and The Wall Street Journal, which asked 1,008 adults for an opinion about the public figure who most disappointed them during the year.

Edwards clobbered the popular golf star with a 33 percent response. Woods claimed only 16 percent.

People taking part in the survey said they were "most disappointed" in Edwards "for having an affair while his wife is being treated for cancer."

The survey was taken Dec. 11-14, a period in which Tiger Woods' reported indiscretions were at the height of notoriety. Survey results were reported in the Thursday edition of The News & Observer of Raleigh.

Earning even lower ranks were singer Chris Brown for beating girlfriend and singer Rihanna, the Gosselins for their breakup despite a reality show featuring their large family situation, Letterman for extramarital affairs with staffers revealed by a would-be blackmailer, New York Yankee "A-Rod" for using steroidal drugs and the parents of the "balloon boy," the hoax in which rescuers and the national media were led to believe that their son had floated away in an out-of-control balloon.

Edwards gained fame as a trial lawyer in Raleigh, when he represented a small child severely injured in a malfunctioning swimming pool accident a number of years ago. He successfully ran for U.S. Senate but did not seek re-election, but instead made a bid for the Democratic nomination for president. He dropped out of the race and was later tapped for the vice presidential nomination as the running mate of Sen. John Kerry in 2004, which was also unsuccessful.

His wife, Elizabeth, was by his side throughout the campaign and encouraged him to mount another campaign in 2008 for the Democratic presidential nomination, despite her recurrence of breast cancer.

A national tabloid, and later national news media, reported that Edwards had an affair with a documentary filmmaker hired to help with his campaign for president. The woman, Rielle Hunter, later gave birth to a child. Edwards admitted to having an affair with Hunter in an interview on ABC News but denied that he was the child's father.

Originally, the child was rumored to be fathered by Andrew Young, a former aide to Edwards.

Young is scheduled for an appearance on ABC News' "20/20" program in January, when he is to discuss his soon-to-be-released book, "The Politician."

Contact Florence Gilkeson at (910) 693-2479 or by e-mail at florence@thepilot.com.