Football? Sure. Baseball? Yep. Cycling? Definitely. Track & Field? No question. But golf? That’s the question now that the PGA Tour will begin implementation of their own anti-doping plan in 2008 as part of an overall World Golf Foundation policy.
The World Golf Foundation not only includes the PGA Tour but also the European Tour, LPGA, the USGA, Augusta National and the Royal and Ancient Golf Club. With the Asian, Canadian, Japanese and Australasian Tours all signing on to support the plan, we’ve essentially got an anti-doping plan that reaches every corner of the globe.
PGA Commissioner Tim Finchem had long held fast to the belief that there was no need for anti-doping intervention but has changed his position during this past year. Said Finchem earlier this year “…there’s no sport that’s inherently immune to doping. It’s a sad commentary, but it’s true.”
Is it true? And is it really necessary? Golf has always been looked on as a gentleman’s game, one equated to honesty, integrity and good sportsmanship where players self-police and in many instances, call penalties on themselves for unseen infractions. But times apparently are a changing!!
Is this merely a sign of the times, a preemptive strike to keep up with the policies of other professional sports or is there some evidence of cheating that the PGA is hiding from us? Is there a potential Barry Bonds-like abuser lurking on the PGA’s leader board? The only player as beefy as a steroid popping ball player is Tiger Woods yet he’s also the most vocal proponent of this anti-doping plan and has publicly volunteered to be first in line for testing.
I can’t think of another player out there who looks or golfs the part of a doping violator. The guys that hit it 300 yards seem to have reached this mark via advanced technology (i.e. Hotter club faces & balls) mixed in with a bit of exercise but even assuming there is substance abuse on tour, you still have to hit the ball straight! And once the driver is in the bag, players don’t really need muscle, they need technique. They need to hit a wedge 100 yards to a tightly tucked pin location and I’m not sure there’s a drug out there that can help with this. And just how will any banned substance help a professional read and sink a 15 foot putt with a double break in it?
The illegal substances that generally get all the attention are the muscle pumping, strength inducing drugs so prevalent among the Popeye forearmed baseball players of recent years but what about some of the other prohibited substances on the list for testing? The list includes everything from anabolic steroids and hormones to beta-blockers. Now I can see how beta-blockers may be of help to a PGA Tour professional as they basically block the affect adrenalin has on your body. In other words they make you relax! Additionally they facilitate smooth muscle control which explains their prevalence as being a treatment for various heart ailments including cardiac arrhythmias and heart attacks (prevention post-attack).
Woods recently reminded reporters that Nick Price once admitted to using beta blockers but said they actually hurt his game rather than help but drugs have varying effects on people so who’s to say it won’t help the next guy? A few beers usually help calm me down but it certainly doesn’t seem to help my game any! It’s not farfetched to think that beta-blockers may help someone down the road.
It’s better to be proactive rather than reactive so Finchem’s making the right call here but I’m betting on betting on the players and believe golf will not be shamed and dragged into the mud like so many other sports these day.
