Tiger Woods Linked to PED's: Will the Biggest Tiger Bomb of All Explode?
Written by Eric Ball, Tuesday December 15 2009
Can the news get any worse for Tiger Woods?
The New York Times has reported that a Canadian doctor that has treated Woods, swimmer Dana Torres, and NFL players is suspected of providing athletes with performance-enhancing drugs.
Dr. Anthony Galea was found with human growth hormone and Actovegin, a drug extracted from calf's blood, in his bag at the U.S./Canada border in late September. He was arrested Oct. 15 in Toronto by Canadian police.
By now everyone and their 90-year-old grandma is aware of the "extracurricular" antics of Woods over the years that came to life Nov. 27. His personal life has been completely trashed and beaten to a pulp. Women are looking at him the same way PETA looks at Mike Vick.
He has lost some sponsors, but not the top dogs like Nike and Gatorade, so while the short-term effects of the infidelity mess are brutal, long-term it won't be a problem (at least that's what Nike CEO Phil Knight believes).
The long-term issue that players of any sport can't shed in this millennium is getting linked to performance-enhancing drugs. Countless baseball players' legacies have forever been tainted. The lasting image of players like Barry Bonds, Sammy Sosa, and Mark McGwire is needles and lies. Same with cyclist Floyd Landis and track stars Marion Jones and Tim Montgomery, among other Olympians.
We became accustomed to being skeptical of every outstanding performance in almost every sport—but not golf.
Never had there even been a whisper of Woods taking PEDs. He has steamrolled the best players in the world for over 13 years now and never caught a whiff of fishiness from the fans or the PGA.
Dr. Galea said Woods was referred to him by the golfer’s agents, who were trying to speed up the pace of his rehabilitation after knee surgery in June 2008. The doctor said he flew to Orlando, Fla., at least four times to give Woods the platelet therapy at his home.
While the reports are nothing but allegations, the damage has been done. Golf is now going to be thrown under the microscope as we lose confidence in the truthfulness of yet another sport.
Woods is taking an "indefinite leave" from golf, and the speculation on his return is all over the board. He wanted to let the affair saga blow over. The best way to do that requires one to vanish and let the awful American memory forget.
But the speculation of using PEDs will not go away once he returns to the links. The questions he will be answering will turn from his off the course "game" to his on the course performance enhancements.
This is getting ugly for Woods and the PGA. Buckle up, folks—the "Tiger Zoo" reached a boiling point, and now it could extend to a volcanic eruption.
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