Year-round Health Means Winter Work

3 Arrested Following Drug Raids

By DOUG PAPE; Times Leader Staff Writer
 Wednesday, January 21, 1998 &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;Page: 1B 





Casey Martin wants to play professional golf, but the PGA might deny him
the opportunity. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Martin played in two recent Nike Tour events, (the Nike Tour is run by the
PGA Tour) but he needs a golf cart to compete because of a debilitating
disease called Klippel-Trenaunay-Weber Syndrome. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; The problem is that the PGA Tour prohibits golf cart use in tour events.
Martin will fight for the right to use a cart in a court hearing scheduled for
Feb. 2 in his hometown of Eugene, Ore. Martin is challenging the rule based on
the Americans with Disabilities Act. He won an earlier court injunction to use
the cart in the Nike tournaments. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Klippel-Trenaunay-Weber Syndrome is an incurable circulatory disease.
Martin suffers from severe pain and swelling in his right leg. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 It sounds "like an accounting firm," Martin joked in a recent Associated
Press story. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 The disease makes it difficult for Martin to walk 18 holes, let alone walk
the 72 holes required of most tournaments. Martin's leg might eventually have
to be amputated. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 The cart controversy has PGA touring pros like Arnold Palmer and local golf
pros like Tony Cella picking a side. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 "I think part of the game, and the tradition and integrity of the game, is
being able to walk and compete," Palmer said in a recent court deposition. "If
I'm too old to walk, which is getting close, then I'll quit." &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Cella, a golf pro at Fox Hill Country Club, West Pittston, said carts are a
disadvantage as far as pace and rhythm of each shot is concerned. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 "I'm compassionate about a person like that," Cella said. "(If it were up
to me) I would let him use a cart." &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 The public appears to be in Martin's corner as well. In a recent poll on
SportsZone- ESPN's Website- 77.7 percent were in favor of Martin using a cart. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 The Times Leader called area golf courses and received responses on the
issue from representatives of 12 courses. Other area golf courses were closed,
didn't return phone messages, or the golf pro or manager was not available. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Of those who did respond, the answers varied. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Cella and Vince Yanovitch, a pro at the Tamiment Resort, Tamiment, are in
favor of Martin using a cart. Yanovitch said the cart gives Martin a level
playing field with the tour players without disabilities. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Pete Korba from Shawnee on the Delaware, Shawnee, and Jimmy Lucas of Willow
Run Golf Course in Berwick are against Martin using a cart. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 "I feel sorry for him, but if he wants to play the game he has to follow
the rules," Korba said. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Lucas believes Martin has an endurance advantage over players who walk. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 "If he gets to ride in a cart, I'm going to use a motorcycle in
basketball," Lucas said. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Tim Foran, the pro at the Huntsville Golf Club, Lehman Township, declined
to comment on the issue. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Martin won his first event in the recent Nike Lakeland Classic, but missed
the cut in last week's Nike South Florida Classic. To qualify for the PGA tour
next year, he has to win another Nike tournament this season, finish among the
top 15 on the Nike money list at year's end, or finish in the top 40 at PGA
Tour qualifying school. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Martin's qualifying scenario will be a non-issue if the PGA has its way. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 "I need a cart," Martin was quoted after winning the Lakeland Classic. "But
I would do anything to be able to walk down the fairway." &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Some PGA touring pros like Tiger Woods, last year's Masters Champion, had
mixed feelings about the issue. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 "As a friend, I'd love to see him get a cart," Woods, a teammate of
Martin's at Stanford, told the Associated Press. "But from a playing
standpoint, is it an advantage? It probably is ..." &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Brad Faxon was less sympathetic to Martin's case. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 "I don't see guys in the NFL who have knee injuries getting mo-peds," Faxon
said to the AP. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 If Martin wins his case, will it set a precedent for cart use on the tour? &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Players on the Senior PGA Tour (age 50 and over) are allowed to use carts.
Because of the PGA no-cart rule, Ben Hogan limped his way to a victory at the
1950 U.S. Open after injuring both of his legs in a car accident 16 months
earlier. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Steve Lamontagne, who finished a stroke behind Martin in the Lakeland
Classic, limped throughout the 72-hole event because of an ingrown toenail.
The nail was r

Cart Issue Divides Golfers Locals And Professionals Disagree On Whether Pga Should Bend Rules And Allow Physically Disabled Man To Use Cart