Incredible Hulking...Golfers?
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by Bobspoint
Former pro golfer Gary Player has done something that few golfers have ever accomplished...he's suddenly made golf almost interesting. Player claims that steroid use is beginning to run rampant among golfers.
Yes, golfers.
Golf is one of those sports that I have trouble considering a sport, kind of like poker or dog jumping. I've played it a couple of times, and I find it far more interesting to play than to watch. My brother is an avid golfer, but he can no more explain to me why he can sit and watch golf on TV any more than I can explain why I can watch a four-hour baseball game. To each his own, but I have to say this is one of the last bastions I would expect steroids to be a part of.
I mean, bulking up could help you hit farther, I suppose. But that would be a problem when putting, wouldn't it? Plus, if you've got Barry Bonds-like muscles (not to say he uses steroids, of course), wouldn't they get in the way of your swing? I can see football players, wrestlers, bodybuilders and maybe even basketball players wanting to blow themselves up like a balloon at the Macy's Thanksgiving Parade. But golfers? I don't get it.
When asked his opinion, Tiger Woods--who definitely doesn't look like he uses performance enhancing drugs--said, "If anything, probably out here it would be testing positive for maybe being hung over a little bit." He didn't say John Daly, but he's the first person who comes to mind for me.
It's estimated that 50-60% of professional athletes use some form of steroids. Gary Player estimates in golf that percentage is around 10%. He says he personally knows two players. So the reason golf is now sounding even the mildest bit more interesting is because I want to know who those golfers are, and if any pro golfer has suddenly morphed into a hulking, pumped up golf monster because of steroid use. My personal feeling about steroids is that I really don't care if an athlete uses them. They know the risks. Whether they want more home runs or to just be able to break someone's ribs in a tackle, they are choosing to shorten their life span of their own free will. Perhaps if there wasn't such a stigma attached to the drug use, those people would be a little more intelligent and safe, instead of finding dangerous black market substances or depending on a doctor who has no moral or Hippocratic obligation to more carefully monitor their patient (see: Chris Benoit).
I saw a documentary on TLC the other night called The Man Whose Arms Exploded. Great title, by the way. Anyway, it was about Gregg Valentino, who had the world's largest biceps until his stupid and reckless disregard for safety with steroid injections caught up with him. First of all, I do bicep curls every night, but there is buff and there is grotesque. His were grotesque, but, like an anorexic who thinks she's fat when everyone else can see her ribs, Valentino did not understand moderation. He ended up getting into the black market steroid scene, got arrested, and lost just about everything that was ever important to him. And for what?
So is it the public's business to insist on clean athletes? Does mandatory drug testing make a difference? Well, we can assume all we want (like with Barry Bonds), but as long as these guys find ways to cheat the system and remain in the testosterone closet, all the testing in the world isn't going to stop them if they think they're above the system.
Ultimately, they'll see the light--hopefully it won't be at the end of a long tunnel. http://bobsblogpoint.blogspot.com/
If professionals are using steroids then amateurs must use steroids if they wish to keep up and become professional. Eventually, everyone will be using steroids because if atheletes don't use steroids, they will find themselves destroyed by someone who does.
Teenagers are under enough pressure already, having them mess with their body chemistry in the name of competition is irresponsible.
I have many points to make, but I'm not much of a writer, please bear with me.
1. What if a teenager messes with their natural hormone production by taking steroids during their formative years. Their body chemistry is messed up for life.
2. What about the atheletes that try to go pro and fail? They could end up at some dead end job with their bodies are all broken down. Prematurely aged.
Steroid use changes body chemistry.
3. In my mind competition allows us to observe and marvel in the atheletic achievements of human beings.
"Look what we are capable of!" The use of performance enhancing drugs taints any of those achievements. "Look what we are capable of when we use drugs that alter our size and shape!"