Sign up for our daily newsletter
Want latest news, reviews, analysis, deals, and events, and offers from our commercial partners? We’ve got you.
• Tour pro’s claims about Tiger dismissed
• ‘There is no truth whatsoever to these claims’
• Accuser Olsen withdraws claims made to radio show
Both the PGA Tour and representatives of Tiger Woods have denied extraordinary accusations made by a journeyman professional that the former world No.1 is serving a suspension for a failed drug test.
Speaking to a radio station in the USA, Dan Olsen – who last played in a PGA Tour event in 2011 – said: “I’ve heard that he’s suspended. I heard he’s on a month’s suspension.”
Adding that it was a ‘credible person that’s telling me this’, Olsen continued: “It’s not testosterone but it’s something else. I think when it’s all said and done, he’s gonna surpass Lance Armstrong with infamy.”
Referencing the sex scandal that erupted around Woods in late 2009 and subsequently cost him his marriage, Olsen added: “”They’re not even going to remember the women. The women are going to take a distant second place.”
“These claims are absolutely, unequivocally and completely false.” – Tiger Woods‘ agent, Mark Steinberg
The interview quickly went viral, prompting swift and vehement denials by both the tour and Woods’ camp – and a full retraction of the claims by Olsen.
“There is no truth whatsoever to these claims. We categorically deny these allegations,” said Ty Votaw, executive vice president of the PGA Tour, an unusual move for the tour, which almost never comments one way or the other on disciplinary matters.
Woods’ agent Mark Steinberg added: “These claims are absolutely, unequivocally and completely false. They are unsourced, unverified and completely ridiculous.”
In a statement of his own, given to ESPN.com, Olsen, pictured above, said: “Everything I said on that radio interview was only my opinion and not based on any first hand knowledge or facts.”
Olsen had also brought in question the legality of the golf ball that Woods uses, saying he ‘played a ball that nobody else could play.’
Adding that Tiger ‘has the help of the establishment’, Olsen told the radio show: “That combined with his enhancement issues, like having a Canadian blood spinning doctor in his phone, you know? I mean, I think people are starting to openly call it what it is, which is gonna be a problem for him.”
“Every ball Tiger has put in competitive play from Nike has been thoroughly tested and approved by the USGA and R&A.” – Nike statement
In a statement, Nike, which manufactures Woods’ equipment, dismissed Olsen’s claim about the golf ball, saying: “Every ball Tiger has put in competitive play from Nike has been thoroughly tested and approved by the USGA and R&A in accordance with their governing rules.”
Woods is currently on an indefinite leave of absence from the PGA Tour to deal with issues in his game. He withdrew during the opening round of the Farmers Insurance Open last month and missed the cut in his first tour event of the year, the Waste Management Phoenix Open, in January.
Following the completion of the Honda Classic yesterday, he is now in 75th place on the Official World Golf Rankings.
Tiger Woods claims :: your thoughts
What do you make of the claims made (and subsequently retracted in full) by Dan Olsen that Tiger Woods has been suspended by the PGA Tour? Leave your thoughts in our ‘Comments’ section below.
More Reads
The bunkered Golf Course Guide - Scotland
Now, with bunkered, you can discover the golf courses Scotland has to offer. Trust us, you will not be disappointed.
Find Courses