Perhaps it was just a coincidence but on the same day that former Sen. George Mitchell released his long-awaited report on steroid use in major league baseball, the PGA Tour sent players copies of its anti-doping policies and procedures. The Tour had previously announced that drug testing will start this summer. Predictably, players interviewed at the Tiger Woods Target World Challenge had not read the 41-page document. Several players, including Woods, made inane statements about how “thick” the handbook was, suggesting it would be beyond their comprehension to read anything more difficult than a scorecard or a pin sheet. The booklet contains a list of prohibited substances that fall under 10 categories, ranging from anabolic steroids to human growth hormones (HGH), which were a focus of the Mitchell report on baseball. The banned substances also include narcotics to beta blockers. Unlike baseball, which apparently told players about “random” tests in advance, the PGA Tour can test players any time and any where without notice, event at non-tournament sites. In fairness, Woods and other pros said they are in favor of drug testing. The LPGA Tour also will start drug testing this year. Until the first tests are conducted, right now golf is perhaps the only major sport devoid of questions about drug use. Let’s hope it stays that way.
Hitting range balls while wondering whatever happened to Lon Hinkle.
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All golf all the time with reflections on the game of golf including the PGA Tour, the USGA, golf on television, golf equipment and more.
About Me
- Mr. Fairway
- Mr. Fairway’s love affair with the game of golf began in junior high. He once made his living as a journalist covering high school sports, cops and robbers and politics. Today, Mr. Fairway is a public relations consultant and a widely-published freelance golf writer. His current USGA handicap index is 9.3 and he averages 50-plus rounds a year.