At least now we know what Dustin Johnson has been doing with his time away from the PGA Tour.
Johnson, who took a leave of absence from the tour for a purported failed drug test, is expecting his first child with fiancee Paulina Gretzky, the couple announced Tuesday night on Instagram.
Johnson’s leave of absence from the PGA Tour, which he announced on July 31, coincided with a six-month suspension, for a failed drug test (cocaine) earlier this year, according to multiple reports.
At the time Golf.com reported it was the third strike for Johnson, ranked 16th in the world and an eight-time winner. He tested positive for marijuana in 2009 and cocaine in 2012, when he served a previous suspension, unannounced by the PGA Tour, which has the option to keep private any breaches of its recreational drug policy.
The PGA Tour, however, has steadfastly denied that Johnson has been suspended, although the Tour has never made it clear if Johnson — if faced with a suspension — had cut a deal with the Tour for voluntarily taking leave.
Johnson, who was a fixture on the last two Ryder Cup teams, has been keeping a very low profile since leaving the tour, perhaps in an attempt to rehab his tarnished image.
Johnson, who last year got engaged to Gretzky, the daughter of hockey legend Wayne Gretzky, has a reputation as a hard partier with several unconfirmed stories of his dabbling in drugs and extra-marital affairs circulating around the PGA Tour. He is said to have had two trysts with wives of PGA Tour players, including one that allegedly broke up the marriage of one player.
After leaving the tour, a report stated Wayne Gretzky warned Johnson to clean up his act or he’d halt the wedding to his 25-year-old daughter.
The report also said the Gretzky family had known about Johnson’s lifestyle for some time and that the hockey legend sought to be a “positive influence.”
