Golfer Doug Barron has filed a lawsuit against the PGA Tour after they suspended him over a doping offence. Barron asked a court in Tennessee to lift his 12-month ban, saying the suspension was unfair and he had been defamed.
The PGA did not name the drug but Barron revealed he had been using beta-blockers, prescribed for him by a doctor to treat a heart problem. Barron also said he had been prescribed testosterone because he had an abnormally low level of the hormone, comparable to that of an 80-year-old man.
Barron said he could not be banned based on his disability, arguing that the PGA Tour's anti-doping program was unfair because it included common medications.
Barron cited the 2001 case of golfer Casey Martin, who went to the U.S. Supreme Court to win the right to use a golf cart on the tour due to a disability. Barron's case was presented to a local court in Memphis but was then transferred to a federal court.
The PGA Tour, in its reply to Barron's suit, said its anti-doping policy followed standard protocols that do not allow for exemptions for players with low testosterone levels.
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