After serving a one-year suspension for skipping a PGA Tour drug test, Mark Hensby is back on the course in search of status.
The Aussie came under fire last year at the Sanderson Farms Championship, when he failed to supply a urine sample for a Tour-mandated drug test. Hensby later explained that he had just gone to the bathroom near the end of his round and didn’t believe he would be able to supply a sample, but that he “showed poor judgment” by ignoring multiple calls and texts from Tour officials after leaving the course.
Hensby’s one-year suspension was announced in December but retroactive to the skipped test, meaning he was eligible to return to Tour-sanctioned competition this week. He’s back to work in California at the second stage of Web.com Tour Q-School, where he opened the 72-hole event with a 1-under 71. That left Hensby in a tie for 20th among 71 players, with the top 18 and ties at the end of the week advancing to final stage.
Hensby won the 2004 John Deere Classic and played in the 2005 Presidents Cup. But the 47-year-old recently told Golfweek that he was disappointed by how the Tour handled his situation over the past year.
“A guy of my age, they don’t care and I understand that. I’m not going to draw people to a tournament,” Hensby said. “Once they know there’s no need for you any more, they throw you away. That’s kind of what it feels like to me.”
Hensby, who earned more than $6.3 million during his PGA Tour career, could also have another avenue to Web.com status once he turns 48 in June, since the circuit holds a handful of spots at each event specifically for Tour veterans ages 48 and 49 who are on the cusp of joining PGA Tour Champions.