David Maxwell/AFP via Getty
Ex-PGA tour heavy-hitter Casey Martin has had his right leg amputated due to issues stemming from a rare circulatory disease. Martin, who successfully sued the PGA Tour to use a cart on the course because of his leg condition in the early 2000s, told Golf Digest that he viewed the amputation as his “destiny” and largely expected. The 49-year-old decided to amputate after numerous treatments failed to properly heal a broken leg. The Oregon Ducks’ men’s golf team coach had surgery on Friday and is recovering well enough that a prosthesis could be in the cards, according to his brother.
The rare circulatory disease, called Klippel-Trenaunay-Weber syndrome, made it almost impossible for Martin to complete an 18-hole game, but he miraculously pulled through and earned a PGA Tour card for the 2000 season.