Dustin Johnson taking a leave of absence from tour, Suspended for cocaine use

[jamo]

  iacas said:

[URL=http://taylormadegolf.com/tour-players/Dustin_Johnson.html]http://taylormadegolf.com/tour-players/Dustin_Johnson.html[/URL]

Wow. [quote name="Ernest Jones" url="/t/76216/dustin-johnson-taking-a-leave-of-absence-from-tour-suspended-for-cocaine-use/210_30#post_1031161"]Someone else mentioned this up-thread and I kinda agree. Why is DJ getting suspended for drug use? It wasn't a PED right? Or is the suspension for banging other guys' wives? Was Daly ever suspended for being a drunk? I know he's been fined for acting like a drunk at Tour events but has he ever been suspended just for being a drunk? As long as you're not wasted at an event is it any of the Tour's business? I guess you could argue "conduct unbecoming..." and casting the Tour in a bad light, but really, we only know about it because of the suspension and subsequent press releases and rumours so in that regard they would have been better served not to suspend him. I'm glad he's getting help, he'll need it, but I'm doubtful of his chances of success if this is a mandated clean-up rather than a voluntary one. If he's doing lines off of Walker's wife's ass at an event then he certainly deserves a suspension but if he's been suspended because he failed a drug test (for non-PEDs) that he consumes during his own personal time I call foul. Don't get me wrong, I'm not advocating for recreational drug use but I am advocating for personal freedoms without a nanny state telling us what we can and cannot do. Persecution for victimless crimes is total bullshit IMHO.[/quote] A big part of me is with you.

[Abu3baid]

From the PGA commish in an ESPN article about PGA integrity and lack of transparency while talking about "recreational drugs" .. "We don't publicize those," the commissioner said. "We treat those as conduct unbecoming. I'm not saying this has happened or not. I'm just saying what the process is. If we get a test like that, we will consider it conduct unbecoming, and what are our choices? We can suspend a player, we can fine a player, we can do both of those and put a player into treatment. We could also add to that regular testing."

[Missouri Swede]

  Ernest Jones said:

Someone else mentioned this up-thread and I kinda agree. Why is DJ getting suspended for drug use? It wasn't a PED right?

It's covered under Drugs of Abuse in the PGA Tour policy. http://www.pgatour.com/news/2013/01/30/doping.html

[Aguirre]

I think it's significantly different than an average workplace.  For one, the PGA Tour is not paying him a salary and he is not their employee.  If drug abuse is hurting his performance, it's only damaging himself.  I don't blame the players for wanting to test for PEDs.  I wouldn't want to feel pressured in a doping arms race.  But recreational drugs?  Who cares with a tour pro?

But if I'm running a company, I probably wouldn't want my CFO doing rails off strippers tits and having an addiction.  It could seriously affect my bottom line.

[zipazoid]

Couple other thoughts -

Someone once said, some pro, that if a player is doing recreational drugs & trying to compete on the Tour, they won't be on the leaderboard. DJ kinda proved that wrong.

Secondly, cocaine stays in your system for 3 days max. Which means that when DJ tested positive he was either coming off a run or did some rails right before the test (could be smoking it for that matter).

Which makes me conclude that this guy has freakish golf talent if you think about it. If he stays clean after the suspension? My gawd. Consider the possibilities.

[Hammer 4]

  Aguirre said:

People get killed over drugs because drugs are illegal.  The same thing happened when alcohol was illegal in the 1920s.  When people are running an illegal business, they resort to illegal means to protect their business.  It's not as though they can take rival dealers to courts.  The black market runs up prices, and rather than help addicts, we throw them in prison.

Also, alcohol and cigarette smoking kill far more people than cocaine every year.  The dangers of illicit drugs like cocaine, heroin, and even crystal meth are constantly overhyped by law enforcement and public health types, because it helps their parasitic profession.

We're getting off topic here.  But no, DJ blowing a few lines off Paulina's ass isn't victimizing anyone.

I disagree..And yep, gettin OT here.

[Aguirre]

  InTheRough said:

It has more to do with the image of the organization than anything else.

Well, they're not helping their own case.  Two days ago I had no idea DJ ever did cocaine once.  Now, thanks to the tour, I know he's been doing it for years.  Good job.

[RJH999]

http://thesandtrap.com/t/76240/the-official-not-official-at-all-drugs-alcohol-thread/0_40#post_1031191

[RJH999]

There is now an official unofficial thread regarding this.

[Gunther]

  Aguirre said:

Well, they're not helping their own case.  Two days ago I had no idea DJ ever did cocaine once.  Now, thanks to the tour, I know he's been doing it for years.  Good job.

Wasn't the Tour who released that, it was Golf Magazine or Golf.com via an unnamed source. Bottom line, he signed the code of conduct, he knew what he was doing was a suspendable/fineable offense. He's getting off pretty easy actually. Hope he takes the opportunity to clean himself up.

[Aguirre]

  Gunther said:

Wasn't the Tour who released that, it was Golf Magazine or Golf.com via an unnamed source.

Bottom line, he signed the code of conduct, he knew what he was doing was a suspendable/fineable offense. He's getting off pretty easy actually. Hope he takes the opportunity to clean himself up.

Yes but there's no story if there's no test and/or suspension.

And I'm not saying he shouldn't be suspended.  I'm okay with them having their own code of conduct and enforcing the rules.  I just don't think it's necessary.

[tecnicaskates]

I think you guys are forgetting that these wives are equally guilty. Its a scum bag move but those women chose to participate so I am not sure that's all his fault. As for the drugs that will ruin his life so he'll face plenty of repercussions for his decisions.

[Chilli Dipper]

We're now into arguments about drug legalization and unprovoked ****-shaming. Nice thread we have here, not at all straying well off-topic.

[RJH999]

  Chilli Dipper said:

We're now into arguments about drug legalization and unprovoked ****-shaming. Nice thread we have here, not at all straying well off-topic.

Have I mentioned the official unofficial drugs and alcohol thread?

[DCrotty22]

And the Tour responds to Golf.com's report. You can't make this stuff up.

“With regard to media reports that Dustin Johnson has been suspended by the PGA Tour,” the statement read, “this is to clarify that Mr. Johnson has taken a voluntary leave of absence and is not under a suspension from the PGA Tour.”

[RJH999]

  DCrotty22 said:

And the Tour responds to Golf.com's report. You can't make this stuff up. “With regard to media reports that Dustin Johnson has been suspended by the PGA Tour,” the statement read, “this is to clarify that Mr. Johnson has taken a voluntary leave of absence and is not under a suspension from the PGA Tour.”

Is this a fake article! :)

[Chilli Dipper]

  DCrotty22 said:

And the Tour responds to Golf.com's report. You can't make this stuff up. “With regard to media reports that Dustin Johnson has been suspended by the PGA Tour,” the statement read, “this is to clarify that Mr. Johnson has taken a voluntary leave of absence and is not under a suspension from the PGA Tour.”

It's good to see [URL=http://knowyourmeme.com/memes/comical-ali-baghdad-bob]the Iraqi Information Minister[/URL] was able to find work after the fall of the Saddam regime.

[Hammer 4]

  Chilli Dipper said:

It's good to see the Iraqi Information Minister was able to find work after the fall of the Saddam regime.

O.K...that's pretty funny right thar....