Steroids in golf? Forget the old image of muscleheaded maniacs: in today’s climate, here’s why the tours plan to test
As far as sweeping indictments of a sport’s pharmaceutical cleanliness go, Gary Player’s allegation before the British Open at Carnoustie was hardly at the top of the controversy Richter scale. It came just a week before the leader of the Tour de France was kicked out of the race after missing pre-race drug tests, two other full teams withdrew because riders flunked screens during the race, and more doping allegations swirled around baseball.
Player revealed that a tour pro confided in him that he was taking steroids, something Player said he suspected because of “a massive change in him,” and estimated that at least 10 golfers around the world are using some form of performance-enhancing drug. “It might be a hell of a lot more,” said Player, who also estimated that 50 to 60 percent of athletes in sports are using some sort of performance-enhancing drug. “We’re dreaming if we think it’s not going to come into golf.”
Judging from the reaction of those inside the golf community, Player was either (a) crazy; (b) exaggerating; (c) an out-of-touch, fading star looking for attention–even if it came at the expense of the facts; or (d) all of the above.
But a wide cross section of scientific experts, trainers and instructors say Player is neither crazy nor wrong. Many of them not only believe performance-enhancing drugs would significantly help golfers, but that far more than the approximately 10 pros Player estimated to be taking drugs are using them to recover from injuries quickly and hit the ball longer. How many more? As many as half of the top 100 players in the world, according to one prominent trainer.
Even if the true number is closer to zero than 50, it’s clear that the idea of professional golf not needing to worry about steroids is as outdated as the notion that golfers aren’t athletes. “The reality is that the public is slowly coming to the view that performance-enhancing substances are prolific in sports,” says PGA Tour Commissioner Tim Finchem, who is expected to announce a set of anti-doping rules for the tour later this year. “Whether we have an issue or not doesn’t matter if people think we have one.”
WHAT ARE STEROIDS?
It’s easy to lump steroids into one general “they make you more muscular” category, but different performance-enhancing drugs produce dramatically different effects. Drugs that athletes would use for help fall into four main categories: anabolic steroids, synthetic hormones, beta-blockers and stimulants.
Anabolic steroids like synthetic testosterone are the workhorses of the performance-enhancing drug world. “When you put your body under constant physical stress, it releases substances called corticosteroids,” says Dr. Charles Yesalis, author of Anabolic Steroids in Sport and Exercise. “They’re the most powerful anti-inflammatories in history. But corticosteroids break down muscle tissues as they work.”
Anabolic steroids block the muscles from being broken down, allowing an athlete to train longer, recover faster from that training and build more muscle mass. For a golfer, that means being able to hit more practice balls–and do it more often.
Powerful injected anabolics like stanzolol and deca-durabolin can produce body builder-type gains when taken in conjuction with an aggressive workout regimen. Testosterone creams that are spread on the body before a workout help generate smaller amounts of lean muscle.
Hormone drugs like HGH and EPO have had a central role in the ongoing controversy in baseball. HGH is synthetic human-growth hormone–the substance responsible for bone growth and tissue health–and it is commonly prescribed for its anti-aging effects. EPO is the synthetic form of a natural substance in the body, erythropoietin, that promotes red blood-cell production and increases the cells’ ability to carry more oxygen–both of which give an athlete more endurance.
Beta-blockers–known as nerve-calming “helpers” for players with shaky putting strokes–are designed to block the flow of adrenaline and keep the heart rate and blood pressure under control for patients with heart arrhythmia, high blood pressure or glaucoma. Stimulants like amphetamines increase energy level and are more suitable for action sports like football and baseball.