Golfers will be tested for drugs at South Africa

HOYLAKE, England – Short and plump, Fred Funk chuckled at the prospect of testing golfers for drugs.

“I wish they would accuse me of using steroids,” Funk said Wednesday, strolling quickly from the putting green to the locker room on the eve of the British Open. “I would be honored, flattered.”

Of course, performance-enhancing drugs are no laughing matter. Golf, with a code of conduct calling for players to police themselves, lags behind the other major sports when it comes to a formal doping policy. That could change following Wednesday’s announcement that testing will be done at the World Amateur Team championship at Stellenbosch, South Africa on Oct. 22-29.

“We don’t think at the moment that there is much use of performance-enhancing drugs in golf,” said Peter Dawson, the chief executive of Royal & Ancient, which runs the oldest of golf’s four major tournaments.

“We are, if you like, cutting our teeth on making sure that we can administer that properly,” said Dawson, adding the tests would be a good first step toward developing an effective doping system. “It’s a rehearsal. I don’t know when you’re going to see drug testing in golf around the world, but we would support it.”

On the PGA Tour, there’s a definite divide between those who want the top pros tested and those who say it would be a waste of time, money and effort.

“We’re self-policing out here,” Funk said. “You’re either good enough or you’re not good enough. I don’t think drugs will help you get better.”

But mindful of the scandals that have bedeviled baseball, cycling and track, Tom Pernice Jr. said he believes golf needs to send a clear signal that performance enhancers won’t be tolerated. He said a detailed testing program, complete with a list of banned substances, is the only way to deliver that message: “I think for the future of the sport more so than what’s going on today,” he said. “We need to do it for the college and high-school kids.”