Philadelphia, PA (Sports Network) - Yes, Vijay Singh admittedly used a bannedsubstance. Yes, the World Golf Hall of Famer should be punished. But let's besure to keep his indiscretion in perspective.

For years now, sports fans have been mercilessly bludgeoned by the seeminglyendless doping narrative. One by one, their favorite athletes have beenrevealed as cheats and liars, delusional sociopaths and frauds.

The result is one of fatigue. People are sick of the charade and when freshPED stories break, the alleged perpetrators are lumped in with the rest ofthe rotten batch; another set of untrustworthy athletes.

Although golf has largely avoided the doping miasma, Singh's involvementin the latest scandal -- originally reported by Sports Illustrated's DavidEpstein and George Dohrmann -- was treated by most with the same kind ofbeleaguered response.

- Most major sports have drug cheats, why not golf?

- Singh allegedly altered a scorecard and was suspended by the Asian Tour in1985. Why couldn't he be capable of another deception?

- How did he not know that IGF-1 -- a banned substance on the PGA Tour -- wasin the deer-antler spray when the tour specifically issued a warning to avoidthe product in 2011?


Epstein and Dohrmann's argument is not that Singh or Ray Lewis are the nextswollen-headed Barry Bonds or roided-out Mark McGwires, but rather that theyare part of a larger group of hyper-competitive athletes who rely on sketchy,unproven science to gain an edge.

The report paints Mitch Ross and Christopher Key, the men behind S.W.A.T.S.(Sports with Alternatives to Steroids), as modern-day snake oil salesman,personable hucksters with a flawed product. It also states that "deer-antlerspray does contain IGF-1, though in small quantities, and deer IGF-1 may noteven work in humans."

The benefits of S.W.A.T.S.'s products seem dubious at best, but Singh seemssold, telling Sports Illustrated that he uses the spray "every couple of hours... every day" and that he's "looking forward to some change in (his) body."

The soon-to-be 50-year-old comes across more as a misguided victim of a hoaxthan a calculated drug cheat. He seems like the guy pumping up his Reeboksbecause he thinks he's going to dunk, or the kid chugging an energy drinkbefore a baseball game because maybe it'll help him cover more ground in theoutfield.

Singh's naivete is almost refreshing. The 34-time PGA Tour winner appearsgenuinely excited at the promise of these products. He also seems altogetherunaware that deer-antler spray contains IGF-1. Why else would he be so candidwith a national reporter?

In the end, though, IGF-1 is a banned substance and Singh should be punishedfor breaking the rules. But let's not lump him in with the Lance Armstrongs ofthe sporting world.

Singh was getting a boost from what may turn out to be a glorified placebo.We've all looked for that slight edge, he just happened to pay $9,000 for somesnake oil.