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PGA Tour Pro Michael Kim Questions Drug Test Timing After ‘Hitting a Couple Long Ones’ At The 2024 Texas Children’s Houston Open

Suchita Chakraborty
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Michael Kim

After hitting a couple of long shots at the Texas Children’s Houston Open, PGA enthusiast Michael Kim questioned the timing of the drug test. The tone of the question was lighthearted and he went on to drop a post regarding the same on Twitter (X). In the April 4 post, he notified his followers that he’d been asked to provide his sample. 

Along with that, he wrote,

“I hit a couple of long ones last week and guess what’s waiting for me? Drug testing.”

At the Houston Open, Kim finished in 64th place after scoring 71, 70, 70, and 70 over four matches. He ended up making a total of nine birdies and eight bogeys during a four-day period. Also, the third round saw a marvelous eagle on hole 8. 

However, Stephan Jaeger won the event after being thirteen strokes ahead of Kim. But Kim shot pretty long drive; his longest drive being 359 yards.

PGA Tour drug tests can be quite sudden, and meticulous. Here’s how and when they’re conducted.

How Does The PGA Tour Carry Out Anti-Drug Tests?

For several years, the PGA Tour tested the urine of golfers. But in a revised program back in 2017-18, it was notified that a blood test would take place. The tour released several banned substances that aligned with the World Anti-Doping Agency. Also, a few players got suspended for not abiding by the rules; most recently, Byeong Hun An faced the consequences. He received three months of suspension for taking a cough medicine that contained banned ingredients.

Jay Monahan later addressed the issue and stated that the golfer fully cooperated in the ongoing process and accepted the period of break. The test begins in July and if a player is caught three times in a row, he is banned from the tour.

Kim’s latest performance was at the Valero Texas Open, where the golfer couldn’t make it to the weekend and was outside the field after scoring a three-over. Thus, it’s to see what will be the next venture of the golfer in the coming weeks. 

About the author

Suchita Chakraborty

Suchita Chakraborty

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Suchita Chakraborty is a senior golf writer at The SportsRush. She did her post-graduation at St. Xavier's University. For a year now, she has developed a riveting inclination toward golf, with Tiger Woods and Rory McIlroy being her top-tier motivational figures to indulge in the sport. She even lives by the words of the Hall of Famer, "You can always become better", which impels her to excel every day. Her strong suit in golf is covering the LPGA Tour, especially the nooks and crannies of the international event, the Solheim Cup. As a pastime amusement, Suchita also engages herself in reading about golf controversies. Her favorite pick is ‘LIV and Let Die’ by Alan Shipnuck, which covers the PGA-LIV beef.

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