Golf as a sport, sees few scandals; Randhawa episode a rare one

By Rahul Banerji

When Jyoti Randhawa was arrested on charges of poaching in Uttar Pradesh’s Bahraich three days ago, it marked a rare instance of a golfer caught up in circumstances beyond his control.

For a game that has as long and storied a history as golf does, documented scandals and borderline activities are hard to come by indeed.

On a day by day basis, there is plenty of dodgy nudge-nudge, wink-wink stuff on golf courses around the world, but it is hard to come by something that goes on to make the headlines.

Of course, there are the exceptions that mark the rule. Tiger Woods is the first name that comes to mind for indiscretions that reverberated around the world. Part of the reason for that also was his stature. Yet, there are not too many others to be found.

Of the lot, it is possibly the Ryder Cup that grabs the most attention for happenings around and off the course as much as the action on it. That though, stems from the intensity of the rivalry and the almost tribal instincts of the fans on either side of the pond come Ryder Cup season.

As far as the adventure-loving Randhawa is concerned, here are the facts. A dead jungle fowl, part of a deer hide, ammunition and a hunting rifle were recovered from him at the time of the arrest.

Some reports suggested it had a telescopic sight and one even went on to claim the weapon had a silencer, a device to suppress the sound of a shot.

Forest officials, range staff and Special Tiger Protection Force jawans intercepted vehicle number HR26 DN 429 on suspicion in Motipur Range of Katerniaghat, near the Dudhwa Tiger Reserve in UP.

During the search that followed, a pair of binoculars, empty cartridges, live ammo, magazine, a rangefinder, and two searchlight were also found.

Randhawa was accompanied by one Mahesh Virajdar, a former Navy officer who had been court martialled and removed from service. If convicted, the two face fairly long prison sentences for allegedly shooting protected game.

Randhawa was ranked in the top 100 of the Official World Golf Ranking several times between 2004 and 2009. He was also in the news for offering to lead a pack of tracker dogs during the hunt for the man-eating tigress Avni in the forests of Yavatmal in Maharashtra.

Avni was later shot dead in controversial circumstances on November 2.

Like Tiger Woods, this was an instance of a golfer straying a little too close to the line away from the course, but there are others that became news for happenings directly related to golf itself.

A search through the world wide web threw up a few reminders.

Phil Mickelson

Despite making close to a million dollars on insider stock trading information, Mickelson did not face criminal charges and had instead to pay back “all ill-gotten gains” as a penalty after being charged as a “relief defendant.”

Mickelson has since taken responsibility for his actions.

Other examples involve cheating or poor sportsmanship in a sport that prides itself on probity and etiquette.

Many individuals in the golf community have faced difficult times thanks to scandalous behavior. In our opinion, these seven instances are the worst golf scandals in history.

John Daly

Known as much for his clothes, straight talking, colourful lifestyle and hard drinking as for his long hitting, John Daly has long been billed the hilly-billy king of golf. What is not so well known, is that he also had a gambling problem on his tax returns, Daly noted that he had over the years faced a net loss from gambling in excess of $50 million.

As he said later, “We went through all my tax records to find out, because I really didn’t know, and it just came to that. I was shocked. I thought it might have been $20-25 (million), but I had no idea that it was $55-57 million. It’s crazy.”

Dustin Johnson

For all his exploits on the golf course, the laid back Dustin Johnson almost saw his professional career upended after testing positive for cocaine and marijuana. In 2014, DJ opted to take a “voluntary leave of absence” and in a statement issued by his management company, said: “I will use this time to seek professional help for personal challenges I have faced.

“By committing the time and resources necessary to improve my mental health, physical well-being and emotional foundation, I am confident that I will be better equipped to fulfill my potential and become a consistent champion.”

In all, it was the third time that DJ had failed a drug test, once for marijuana and twice for cocaine use.

Tiger Woods

In November 2009, a tabloid reported that nightclub promoter Rachel Uchitel had had an affair with Tiger Woods. Soon, photographs of an SUV driven by Woods that had hit a tree near his home in Orlando, Florida among rumours that his then wife, Elin Nordegren, had hit him with a golf club.

Other revelations about his infidelity tumbled out following which Woods apologised to his wife. It was a huge setback for the world’s most popular golfer and cost him massively in terms of sponsorships and endorsements and also led to his divorce.

Earlier this year, Woods was arrested for a DIU violation after being found asleep in his car. The 14-time major winner then said in a statement, “I understand the severity of what I did, and I take full responsibility for my actions.

“I want the public to know that alcohol was not involved. What happened was an unexpected reaction to prescribed medications. I didn’t realise the mix of medications had affected me so strongly.”

Vijay Singh

The former number one was suspended from the PGA Tour for using deer antler spray in violation of the Tour’s Anti-Doping Policy. In 1985, Vijay Singh was caught changing his score on a hole and replacing it with a lower number after the card had been signed. Once the allegations were confirmed, Vijay was banned from the Asian Tour though he still maintains that he had not cheated.

Singh was also in the news a few years later, in 2003, for being the most outspoken opponent of LPGA legend Annika Sorenstam getting a PGA Tour start, the first such crossover instance in 58 years. “I hope she misses the cut. Why? Because she doesn’t belong out here,” he was famously quoted as saying.

Though many others felt the same was, it was the Fijian who took the fall for his stand that giving Sorenstam a slot would deprive one professional from trying to earn his living form the Tour.

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