Tiger Woods emphatically denies that he has ever used performance-enhancing drugs, but almost a quarter of PGA Tour players surveyed by Sports Illustrated don't believe him. Of 71 PGA Tour players surveyed, 24 percent said they thought Woods "used HGH or other performance-enhancing drugs." Seventy-six percent said they believed that Woods did not take any PEDs.

Questions about Woods and PEDs arose in late 2009 when a New York Times article linked Woods to Canadian doctor Anthony Galea. The Times said Galea was under criminal investigation in the United States, and that he was suspected of providing performance-enhancing drugs to athletes. At the Masters this month, Woods said that federal investigators had contacted his agent, Mark Steinberg, about the Galea probe, but had not asked to interview him. During that same media conference, Woods unequivocally denied taking any performance-enhancing drugs and said that Galea was treating his left leg after Woods's knee surgery in 2008.

"(Galea) never gave me HGH or any PEDs. I've never taken that my entire life. I've never taken any illegal drug, ever, for that matter," Woods said, going on to explain that Galea had given him "platelet-enriched plasma treatments," a blood-spinning technique that Galea has used on many elite athletes to help them recover from surgery faster. "As you all know, in 2008 I blew out my ACL (anterior cruciate ligament), and part of my reconstruction with my LCL (lateral collateral ligament), it wasn't reacting properly, it was a little bit stuck. And so I had the PRP injection into my LCL."

At the Quail Hollow Championship in Charlotte, N.C., on Wednesday, Woods said that his physical therapist recommended Galea, although Woods declined to name the therapist. The New York Daily News reported in December that Woods had been treated by Mark Lindsay, a Canadian chiropractor who is a principal in a Toronto clinic with Galea, and the Times reported that it was Lindsay who asked Galea to look at Woods. Lindsay sometimes treated patients of Bay Area Lab Cooperative (BALCO) founder Victor Conte. In 2005 Conte pleaded guilty to distributing steroids and money laundering.

"A lot of guys have worked with (Galea), a lot of athletes have worked with him. Look at the list of athletes he's worked with, it's a who's-who," Woods said. "As I explained earlier at the Masters, the same thing with Dr. (Mark) Whitten with my eyes. One of the reasons why I went to see (Whitten) is because he's worked with so many athletes and had just a tremendous amount of success, and Dr. Galea was the same."

The Sports Illustrated survey appears in the May 3 issue of SI Golf Plus. In the annual survey, the magazine polled 71 Tour players about their views on everything from Woods's recent sex scandals and the Ryder Cup to President Barack Obama. Only 8 percent of players surveyed said they had heard about Woods's infidelities prior to his Thanksgiving night car accident. The complete survey is here.



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Thanks Hips......that was very illuminating . It's hard to say if he used HGH or not. just a few years ago HGH was not looked at as some kind of hardcore steroid type thing. It is very possible he used it 10 years ago or more when it was being pushed as a "supplement" kind of thing amongst the gym rats. He got big very fast between 1997 and 1998-99 or so. It would not be surprising to me if he used HGH as one of his workout supplements , but it he was very young in those days and more under the control of his dad. It is doubtful he used it at that time. He probably just worked out hard and used protein supplements. It's a big help in muscle recovery , so you can workout like a fiend on that stuff. In fact.....i'm not sure HGH should be something that's banned for use by golfers as they age. Maybe the synthetic injectable form ...but supplements designed to increase production of HGH by the pituitary gland are generally very safe.

I don't use any of these supplements ..YET..but it's on my radar. It's been shown to be a big advantage to aging athletes. There is some question about effect on kidneys , but that's the very expensive injectable synthetic form used to treat kids with growth problems. The natural herbal form designed to increase HGH production has shown many benefits for older folks. Many golfers are older.....hmmmmmm.

I guess that is the answer that a lot of athletes give about HGH, it wasn't illegal then so I'm OK saying that I never took any banned substances.
I know that getting Jack Nicklaus model hip replacements sure helped this old body get out and on the course more. And after the 2nd one when they put a pint of my blood back in in recovery, I was wide awake and ready to walk out of there...almost

HGH does not show up in blood tests. They should just let the best android win. I could use a back replacement...knee replacement ... neck replacement....shoulder replacement ...and maybe the Adam Scott model head replacement.

I get pain in my hips from my bad low back pain. I currently have pain in my shoulder and left arm from a whiplash type injury while playing hockey. I'm a mess.....i need HGH and whatever else they have that can help.

The Sun is shining through...maybe some golf practice before my lovely wife gets other ideas.

Now that's different from what I've heard about you. Everyone else says you are a pain in the A_ _

WHY I OUTTA.........i guess i AM the official McDivots "pain in the ass."

Actually.......i had this huge hematoma on my ass earlier this year , hitting the ice hard on my derriere and somehow hitting between the pads on my hockey pants. I had this giant butt for several days. It was a true...pain in my ass. I still take a ribbing for it. "Hey Beck...how's the ass ?"

I still have remnants of pain from that thing..........i'm a pain in my own ass.

See, I knew it