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Late last year J. P. Hayes was in the preliminary round of the PGA “Q School” qualifying tournament. This is a grueling process where the top players go on to the final round and then the top 25 are given their tour card to play on the PGA tour for 2009. He was in great shape to move to the final round a few weeks later. Only then did he realize that he not only used a different ball on the 12th hole of the first round, for which he assessed himself a two shot penalty, but also that the ball was illegal for use in PGA tour events. No one knew. Not even his caddy. He was in the clear. But he knew. He called the tournament officials and disqualified himself for using a nonconforming ball in the tournament. In doing so he lost potentially millions of dollars in prize money and endorsement. He did not however lose his self respect and the respect of golfers around the world. This is not a new phenomenon in golf. Bobby Jones called a 1 stroke penalty against himself in the 1925 US Open. That stroke ended up sending him to a playoff which he lost. When praised for his honesty and sportsmanship Jones replied, “You might as well praise me for not robbing banks.”
Such honesty and integrity have made the game of golf what it is today. Whether you like it or not, golf is the only sport where it is not ok to lie until you get caught. Soccer players dive, tennis players argue with the linesmen, and football linemen devise new ways to hold their opponents without getting caught. It is all a sad commentary on our “ends justifies the means” culture in sports today. It is sad because our children watch their heroes and imitate their actions. “I love me some me,” says Terrell Owens. We wonder why our kids do not understand the importance of teamwork and fairness. Charles Barkley said years ago that he was not a role model for anyone’s kids. He was trying to elude that responsibility and put the onus back on parents. I understand what he was trying to do but now that he has had his own gambling and alcohol problems maybe he would admit that he has more influence than he formerly realized. Recently Michael Phelps was caught smoking pot. Now he is contrite and asking for forgiveness. What about the kids who see that picture of him sucking on a bong and go out and do the same thing? He has his millions already. What about the lives that will be ruined that follow his example? They have no millions to fall back on.
Today a sports figure is counted a hero if they admit their fault. Just this week Alex Rodriguez admitted his use of steroids when he was with the Texas Rangers in 2001 through 2003. He did so only after being caught. What kind of integrity and strength does it take to admit you’re wrong after you have been caught? Years ago Ervin Johnson was hailed as a courageous hero after he made public his medical condition. The fact that he was promiscuous and irresponsible was not even brought up. He admitted his lack of discipline and integrity only after it was going to become public anyway. Is this really a hero? John McEnroe used to argue calls on the tennis court, not because they were incorrect but because that gave him an edge. He was able to rest, keep his opponent off guard, break his opponent’s momentum, and change the focus of the match. None of this is within the spirit of the rules of tennis.
When I was a kid, I idolized baseball players. I slept with my glove in the bed with me. I memorized the stats on baseball cards and read books about the greats of the game. Now we have Alex Rodriguez, who is only the latest in a long line of shame, who have tarnished the great game that I used to love. Andy Petit, Jason Giambi, Raphael Palmeiro, and soon Miguel Tejada are just a few of the players to come contritely before the public and admit their guilt. They did this only AFTER they were caught. Even Pete Rose admitted his guilt of gambling on baseball. This finally occurred years later when he wanted publicity to sell his latest book. What kind of guts does all of this take? I’ll tell you what kind. NONE. It takes no guts to ask for leniency and forgiveness after you have been caught cheating. We would not consider such a request in academics or the business world, but we are supposed to accept it from the sports world. I grew up with a simply childish saying as I played sports: “Cheaters never win and winners never cheat.” You can call me naive but I believe that even today. Does that mean that we cannot forgive? Of course not. Does it mean that sports figures can never make a mistake? Of course not. It just means that when they do, there should be consequences. Those consequences should be fair and consistent. We should not hold up as heroic feats of integrity, admitting what you have already been caught at doing.
I remember as a kid, watching Hank Aaron hit his 715th homerun to pass Babe Ruth for the all time lead in homeruns. Aaron, who started his career in the Negro Leagues and dealt with the ugliness of the racism of the time, handled himself with class and dignity. In 1974 as I watched him round those bases in that famous homerun trot, I felt that I had witnessed something special and historical. Hank Aaron is a true baseball hero. Barry Bonds, who recently passed Aaron’s milestone of 755 homeruns, is mired in controversy over his continued denials of his use of performance enhancing drugs (cheating). Mr. Bonds may end up in jail after all has been said and done. Do Barry Bonds, Mark McGwire, Alex Rodriguez, et al belong in the hall of fame? Should their records stand? I think the Olympics have it right. If a person is caught cheating, their records are expunged and their medals are returned. In the Olympics, if a person on a team is caught cheating, the whole team is disqualified. If other sports took this hard line, things would change. If it meant that championships and records were going to be lost, you can bet that the players themselves would make sure that no one on their team cheated.
Thanks to Mr. Hayes, I am going to be watching a whole lot more golf and a whole lot less baseball. When J. P. Hayes does get to the PGA tour (and he will because he is a great golfer) he has a big fan in me waiting for him. I say that the real homerun record belongs to Hank Aaron at 755 homeruns. 755 the natural record; no chemicals added.
