{"id":450634,"date":"2022-05-21T15:51:01","date_gmt":"2022-05-21T12:51:01","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/en.buradabiliyorum.com\/i-spent-millions-on-heroin\/"},"modified":"2022-05-21T15:51:01","modified_gmt":"2022-05-21T12:51:01","slug":"i-spent-millions-on-heroin","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/i-spent-millions-on-heroin\/","title":{"rendered":"#\u2018I spent millions on heroin\u2019"},"content":{"rendered":"<div id=\"ez-toc-container\" class=\"ez-toc-v2_0_84 counter-hierarchy ez-toc-counter ez-toc-custom ez-toc-container-direction\">\n<p class=\"ez-toc-title\" style=\"cursor:inherit\">Table of Contents<\/p>\n<label for=\"ez-toc-cssicon-toggle-item-6a2e5f8ab7c68\" class=\"ez-toc-cssicon-toggle-label\"><span class=\"\"><span class=\"eztoc-hide\" style=\"display:none;\">Toggle<\/span><span class=\"ez-toc-icon-toggle-span\"><svg style=\"fill: #dd3333;color:#dd3333\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" class=\"list-377408\" width=\"20px\" height=\"20px\" viewBox=\"0 0 24 24\" fill=\"none\"><path d=\"M6 6H4v2h2V6zm14 0H8v2h12V6zM4 11h2v2H4v-2zm16 0H8v2h12v-2zM4 16h2v2H4v-2zm16 0H8v2h12v-2z\" fill=\"currentColor\"><\/path><\/svg><svg style=\"fill: #dd3333;color:#dd3333\" class=\"arrow-unsorted-368013\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" width=\"10px\" height=\"10px\" viewBox=\"0 0 24 24\" version=\"1.2\" baseProfile=\"tiny\"><path d=\"M18.2 9.3l-6.2-6.3-6.2 6.3c-.2.2-.3.4-.3.7s.1.5.3.7c.2.2.4.3.7.3h11c.3 0 .5-.1.7-.3.2-.2.3-.5.3-.7s-.1-.5-.3-.7zM5.8 14.7l6.2 6.3 6.2-6.3c.2-.2.3-.5.3-.7s-.1-.5-.3-.7c-.2-.2-.4-.3-.7-.3h-11c-.3 0-.5.1-.7.3-.2.2-.3.5-.3.7s.1.5.3.7z\"\/><\/svg><\/span><\/span><\/label><input type=\"checkbox\"  id=\"ez-toc-cssicon-toggle-item-6a2e5f8ab7c68\" checked aria-label=\"Toggle\" \/><nav><ul class='ez-toc-list ez-toc-list-level-1 ' ><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-1'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-1\" href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/i-spent-millions-on-heroin\/#%E2%80%9C%E2%80%98I_spent_millions_on_heroin%E2%80%9D\" >&#8220;\u2018I spent millions on heroin\u2019&#8221;<\/a><\/li><\/ul><\/nav><\/div>\n<h1><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"%E2%80%9C%E2%80%98I_spent_millions_on_heroin%E2%80%9D\"><\/span>&#8220;\u2018I spent millions on heroin\u2019&#8221;<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h1>\n<div>\n<aside class=\"single__inline-module alignleft\">\n<\/aside>\n<p>In June 2015, pro golfer Will Wilcox was standing on the green at the final hole of the\u00a0Fed-Ex St. Jude Championship in Memphis, Tenn. Ahead of him was a snaking 40-foot putt.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>Make it and there was a check for $114,000 waiting.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>Cool as you like, Wilcox stepped up and drained it like it was a tap-in.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cMost players would look at that as a good week\u2019s work and go home. But I didn\u2019t. I just went straight to a heroin dealer\u2019s house to score. Ended up having a knife pulled on me too,\u201d he said, matter of factly.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThat\u2019s drugs. They take you to some strange, dark places.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>As this week\u2019s PGA Championship concludes at Southern Hills in Tulsa, Okla., and players chase the $2.16 million first prize, it\u2019s worth remembering that not every professional golfer lives a life of luxury.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>Will Wilcox certainly doesn\u2019t \u2014 but he has his reasons.\u00a0<\/p>\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"682\" src=\"https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2022\/05\/will-wilcox-11.jpg?w=1024\" alt=\"Wilcox\" class=\"wp-image-22349205\" srcset=\"https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2022\/05\/will-wilcox-11.jpg?quality=75&amp;strip=all&amp;w=1535 1536w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2022\/05\/will-wilcox-11.jpg?quality=75&amp;strip=all 1024w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2022\/05\/will-wilcox-11.jpg?quality=75&amp;strip=all&amp;w=512 512w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\"\/><figcaption>While one of Alabama\u2019s most talented young golfers, Wilcox started drinking, smoking marijuana and popping pills with his friends at just 13 years old, leading to a golf career full of difficult setbacks.<\/figcaption><figcaption><span class=\"credit\">Roger Kisby for NY Post<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>The 35-year-old grew up in Pell City, Ala., a small town just east of the state\u2019s second biggest city, Birmingham. His mother, Kim, was a talented golfer who once dreamt of playing the LPGA Tour but worked as the head professional at their local track, Pine Harbor Country Club.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>When he got his first set of clubs aged five, Wilcox accompanied his mom to work, taking full advantage of the facilities and, over time, honing a <a href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/category\/game\/\" data-internallinksmanager029f6b8e52c=\"7\" title=\"Game\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">game<\/a> that marked him out as one of the state\u2019s most talented young golfers.<\/p>\n<p>But Pell City was no place to grow up.\u00a0<\/p>\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" width=\"1024\" height=\"682\" src=\"https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2022\/05\/will-wilcox-09.jpg?w=1024\" alt=\"Wilcox\" class=\"wp-image-22349212\" srcset=\"https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2022\/05\/will-wilcox-09.jpg?quality=75&amp;strip=all&amp;w=1535 1536w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2022\/05\/will-wilcox-09.jpg?quality=75&amp;strip=all 1024w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2022\/05\/will-wilcox-09.jpg?quality=75&amp;strip=all&amp;w=512 512w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\"\/><figcaption>Some of Will Wilcox\u2019s earliest friends, who used drugs with him, have gone to prison or died.<\/figcaption><figcaption><span class=\"credit\">Roger Kisby for NY Post<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>In his teens, new temptations emerged. Aged 13, he <a href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/category\/social-mediaa\/\" data-internallinksmanager029f6b8e52c=\"1\" title=\"Social Media\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">social<\/a>ized with older kids, who were drinking, smoking marijuana and popping pills \u2014 and he dived right in.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>Of the eight people in Wilcox\u2019s high school friendship group, one became a successful engineer, three went to prison for up to 10 years and three are now dead. \u201cMy home town and my high school were \u2014 and I\u2019m really not kidding \u2014\u00a0like an open air drug market,\u201d says Wilcox. \u201cIn that respect, I\u2019m very much a product of my own environment.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Wilcox\u2019s teens and early 20s were peppered with petty crime and arrests as alcohol and drugs took him in the wrong direction. It culminated in him being thrown off the golf team at University of Alabama at Birmingham, where his mother was then coaching the women\u2019s team. He was, he admits, his parents\u2019 \u201cworst nightmare.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Kicked out by his parents, Wilcox moved in with his sister in Auburn, Ala. He took a job making pizzas for $5.50 an hour, working 45 hours a week, and paying his sister $100 monthly rent. Another job came at a paper mill where he earned $9 an hour.<\/p>\n<p>Running out of options, he tried to join the Navy in 2006 \u2014\u00a0but even they didn\u2019t want him, not with his rap sheet. With no money and no future, he took his golf clubs to a pawn shop but when they offered him just $50, he decided to keep them.<\/p>\n<p>It was that rarest of things\u00a0\u2014 a good decision at a time when Wilcox was making too many bad ones.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" width=\"1024\" height=\"682\" src=\"https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2022\/05\/will-wilcox-04.jpg?w=1024\" alt=\"Wilcox\" class=\"wp-image-22349253\" srcset=\"https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2022\/05\/will-wilcox-04.jpg?quality=75&amp;strip=all&amp;w=1535 1536w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2022\/05\/will-wilcox-04.jpg?quality=75&amp;strip=all 1024w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2022\/05\/will-wilcox-04.jpg?quality=75&amp;strip=all&amp;w=512 512w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\"\/><figcaption>Despite his addictions, Wilcox made about $4 million in winnings and sponsorships from 2014-2018.  <\/figcaption><figcaption><span class=\"credit\">Roger Kisby for NY Post<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>Then his luck changed. A friend of his father\u2019s, Barry Harwell, was coach of Division II college Clayton State, outside Atlanta, Ga. He offered Wilcox a full ride. It was the break he needed \u2014 and he delivered in spades. A three-time\u00a0All-American, Wilcox also won eight college events and the 2008 Alabama Amateur Championship.<\/p>\n<p>There were blips. While at Clayton, Wilcox overdosed on cocaine and was hospitalized, his heart rate hitting 222 BPM. Not surprisingly, he never touched it again.<\/p>\n<p>But very little else was off limits and, increasingly, he turned to opioids like Percocet, Xanax and Hydrocodone. He was even snorting heroin, though\u00a0Wilcox knew people who had died doing it.\u00a0\u201cI have tons of regrets and that\u2019s\u00a0a big one,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" width=\"1024\" height=\"682\" src=\"https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2022\/05\/will-wilcox-03.jpg?w=1024\" alt=\"Wilcox\" class=\"wp-image-22349266\" srcset=\"https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2022\/05\/will-wilcox-03.jpg?quality=75&amp;strip=all&amp;w=1535 1536w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2022\/05\/will-wilcox-03.jpg?quality=75&amp;strip=all 1024w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2022\/05\/will-wilcox-03.jpg?quality=75&amp;strip=all&amp;w=512 512w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\"\/><figcaption>The golfer\u2019s parents, only seeing his success, didn\u2019t realize he had problems at first.<\/figcaption><figcaption><span class=\"credit\">Roger Kisby for NY Post<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>Despite his addictions, he went on to go pro and make big money. From 2014-2018, Wilcox amassed around $4 million from winnings and sponsorships.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>\u201cAnd that, for me, was a license to party,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n<p>He was still on heroin when he waltzed onto the Nationwide Tour in 2011. \u201cI started making good money there,\u201d he recalled. \u201cI must have made a couple of hundred grand but I\u2019d lost it all by 2012 just because of the drugs.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>By 2013, Wilcox had relocated to St. Croix in the US Virgin Islands, to get himself clean. He began playing some of the best golf of his young life, including shooting the Holy Grail of the game, a sub-60 round at the Utah Championship.\u00a0<\/p>\n<figure class=\"wp-block-pullquote\">\n<blockquote><p>\u2018My home town and my high school were \u2014 and I\u2019m really not kidding \u2014 like an open air drug market.\u2019<\/p>\n<p><cite>Will Wilcox<\/cite><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<\/figure>\n<p>But as the checks kept coming, the cravings returned \u2014 and Wilcox began using again.<\/p>\n<p>Back in Alabama, Wilcox\u2019s family were largely oblivious to his off-course issues. With a healthy bank balance, he would often treat his parents, almost to throw them off the scent. \u201cI would get their yard landscaped or pay for something they needed to be done to their house,\u201d he said. \u201cIn their eyes, I was the golden boy.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>It\u2019s only now that they know the extent of Wilcox\u2019s struggles. \u201cBack then, I might give them snippets of what I was doing but I would really bend the truth,\u201d he said. \u201cBesides, you don\u2019t want to scare your family. You definitely need to sugar coat it some.\u201d<\/p>\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" width=\"1024\" height=\"682\" src=\"https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2022\/05\/will-wilcox-12.jpg?w=1024\" alt=\"Wilcox\" class=\"wp-image-22349282\" srcset=\"https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2022\/05\/will-wilcox-12.jpg?quality=75&amp;strip=all&amp;w=1535 1536w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2022\/05\/will-wilcox-12.jpg?quality=75&amp;strip=all 1024w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2022\/05\/will-wilcox-12.jpg?quality=75&amp;strip=all&amp;w=512 512w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\"\/><figcaption>Wilcox said he would \u201ctreat\u201d his family to throw them off the scent.<\/figcaption><figcaption><span class=\"credit\">Jon Durr\/Getty Images<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>Fortunately for Wilcox, drug testing in the game was relatively lax. \u201cYou\u2019re tested maybe twice a year but you still have to be careful,\u201d he explained. \u201cYou just have to watch what you take and stay hydrated.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>He wasn\u2019t always successful. In 2013, aged 27, he won the\u00a0South Georgia Classic and\u00a0finished seventh on the Korn Ferry Tour money list, earning himself a ticket to the gold-paved streets of the PGA Tour.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>But a positive test for marijuana\u00a0at the Boise Open in Idaho\u00a0before his rookie season started landed him a six-month suspension. \u201cOf all the things I\u2019d taken, it was weed that got me,\u201d he laughed. \u201cYou can take opiates like hydrocodone and that\u2019s OK. Go ahead, take that stuff that turns your organs to concrete. Have at it. Eat a big bowl of \u2019em for breakfast!\u201d<\/p>\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" width=\"682\" height=\"1024\" src=\"https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2022\/05\/will-wilcox-01.jpg?w=682\" alt=\"Wilcox\" class=\"wp-image-22349286\" srcset=\"https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2022\/05\/will-wilcox-01.jpg?quality=75&amp;strip=all&amp;w=1023 1023w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2022\/05\/will-wilcox-01.jpg?quality=75&amp;strip=all&amp;w=682 682w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2022\/05\/will-wilcox-01.jpg?quality=75&amp;strip=all&amp;w=341 341w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2022\/05\/will-wilcox-01.jpg?quality=75&amp;strip=all 1024w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 682px) 100vw, 682px\"\/><figcaption>Will Wilcox\u2019s mother was the head professional golfer at their local track when he was growing up.<\/figcaption><figcaption><span class=\"credit\">Instagram\/@wavegodwilcox1<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>When he finally took his place on the PGA Tour\u00a0in 2014,\u00a0Wilcox couldn\u2019t believe he had made it.\u00a0\u201cI remember looking for my locker. They\u2019re all lined up alphabetically so I get to mine and whose is it right next to it? Tiger Woods! F\u2014\u2013g crazy!\u201d<\/p>\n<p>He played rounds with many top players, including Brooks Koepka, former world No. 1 Jason Day and the 2009 US Open champion Lucas Glover. \u201cHe\u2019s one of my favorite players and the first time I played with him I shot 65 and he shot 77,\u201d he said. \u201cI couldn\u2019t believe I\u2019d beaten a US Open champion by 12 shots over 18 holes. I was like \u2018what the f\u2013k!\u2019\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>Everything seemed to be going to plan,\u00a0even if he was suffering from withdrawal symptoms most weeks. <\/p>\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" width=\"682\" height=\"1024\" src=\"https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2022\/05\/will-wilcox-02.jpg?w=682\" alt=\"Wilcox\" class=\"wp-image-22349305\" srcset=\"https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2022\/05\/will-wilcox-02.jpg?quality=75&amp;strip=all&amp;w=1023 1023w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2022\/05\/will-wilcox-02.jpg?quality=75&amp;strip=all&amp;w=682 682w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2022\/05\/will-wilcox-02.jpg?quality=75&amp;strip=all&amp;w=341 341w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2022\/05\/will-wilcox-02.jpg?quality=75&amp;strip=all 1024w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 682px) 100vw, 682px\"\/><figcaption>Wilcox publicly blamed his 2017 career decline on a wrist injury.<\/figcaption><figcaption><span class=\"credit\">Roger Kisby for NY Post<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>Golf fans were rooting for him. \u201cI\u2019m a small-town kid from Alabama \u2014 ain\u2019t no silver spoon here. I didn\u2019t grow up playing elite clubs like Riviera or frickin\u2019 Shinnecock,\u201d he said. \u201cMaybe people liked that? I was kind of an underdog out there, an everyman I guess.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Like the prodigal son, Wilcox returned to Pell City in December 2014\u00a0but on Christmas Day he found himself not at\u00a0home with his family, but in a run-down hotel room scoring heroin from a dealer. \u201cIt\u2019s what h<a href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/category\/download-scripts-themes-apps\/\" data-internallinksmanager029f6b8e52c=\"9\" title=\"Download Scripts &amp; Themes &amp; Apps\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">app<\/a>ens when you\u2019re addicted,\u201d he reflects. \u201cAnd then I had to go home for the family dinner.\u00a0Let\u2019s say I was very inebriated.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Having qualified for the lucrative end of season FedEx Cup playoffs in 2015, Wilcox was unable to play in the second event of the PGA Tour, the\u00a0Deutsche Bank Championship in Boston, having spent the week before smoking weed and popping pills. A positive drug test was a risk he couldn\u2019t afford so he withdrew, blaming it on a minor injury.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" width=\"1024\" height=\"682\" src=\"https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2022\/05\/will-wilcox-13.jpg?w=1024\" alt=\"Wilcox\" class=\"wp-image-22349332\" srcset=\"https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2022\/05\/will-wilcox-13.jpg?quality=75&amp;strip=all&amp;w=1535 1536w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2022\/05\/will-wilcox-13.jpg?quality=75&amp;strip=all 1024w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2022\/05\/will-wilcox-13.jpg?quality=75&amp;strip=all&amp;w=512 512w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\"\/><figcaption>Wilcox is one of just seven players to make a hole-in-one at the the famed 17th hole at Sawgrass.<\/figcaption><figcaption><span class=\"credit\">YouTube<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>Wilcox\u00a0returned to action the following season, and even made a hole-in-one at the most famous par-three hole in golf \u2014 the 17<sup>th<\/sup>\u00a0at Sawgrass \u2014 during the Players\u2019 Championship in 2016. It was the first ace there in 14 years and Wilcox remains just one of\u00a0seven\u00a0players to do it. His family were there in the gallery to see it too.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>It was a rare highlight in a year that saw his form and health deteriorate. By 2017, his 73-event run on the PGA Tour was over. Publicly, his decline was blamed on a wrist injury but only Wilcox knew the real reason.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"wp-block-pullquote\">\n<blockquote><p>\u2018I\u2019m lucky that I\u2019ve come out the other side and I haven\u2019t destroyed my organs and my body.\u2019<\/p>\n<p><cite>Will Wilcox<\/cite><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<\/figure>\n<p>By the end of 2021, he had even lost his card for the\u00a0second-string Korn Ferry Tour and, disillusioned, decided to retire from golf, aged just 35.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>But, without the day-to-day distraction of playing, Wilcox was at a crossroads. He could carry on using and end up as another statistic or seek help. \u201cI\u00a0was withering away, mentally and physically, which was becoming more and more clear to my loved ones \u2014 so they intervened,\u201d he said.\u00a0<\/p>\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" width=\"1024\" height=\"682\" src=\"https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2022\/05\/tiger-woods.jpg?w=1024\" alt=\"Woods\" class=\"wp-image-22349315\" srcset=\"https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2022\/05\/tiger-woods.jpg?quality=75&amp;strip=all&amp;w=1535 1536w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2022\/05\/tiger-woods.jpg?quality=75&amp;strip=all 1024w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2022\/05\/tiger-woods.jpg?quality=75&amp;strip=all&amp;w=512 512w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\"\/><figcaption>When Wilcox joined the PGA Tour in 2014, his locker was right next to Tiger Woods.<\/figcaption><figcaption><span class=\"credit\">USA TODAY Sports<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>His\u00a0friends and family rallied around, finding him a treatment center. In February, he attended the clinic of Dr Krishna Donaparthi in Atlanta, Ga., a specialist who\u00a0uses\u00a0electro-shocking of the brain to reduce the symptoms of withdrawal by up to 70%. \u201cIt cost as much as a Honda Civic,\u201d said Wilcox.\u00a0\u201cBut I credit Dr. Krishna for saving my life, I really do.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>A few months later, Wilcox is back in the groove. \u201cNow I have clarity in my mind,\u201d he said. \u201cI feel like a kid again.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>In April, he won his first event without his \u201cbirdie pills,\u201d\u00a0cantering to a seven-stroke win at an Emerald Coast Golf Tour event at the\u00a0Holiday Golf Club in Panama City, Fla. It was the first time he had won a tournament clean.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cJust holding a big check again means the world,\u201d he said after his victory, \u201cand getting it sober means even more.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>On Thursday May 5, Wilcox and 84 other players took part in local qualifying for this year\u2019s US Open, to be played at The Country Club, Brookline, Mass., from June 16-19. With just five places available for the next and final stage of qualifying, Wilcox shot 66 at RTJ Golf Trail at Silver Lakes in Gadsden, Ala., and comfortably made it through.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>Next up is Final Qualifying at Woodmont Country Club in Rockland, Md., on June 6 where Wilcox will attempt to go one better\u00a0and make it through to the starting field.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" width=\"1024\" height=\"682\" src=\"https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2022\/05\/will-wilcox-10.jpg?w=1024\" alt=\"Wilcox\" class=\"wp-image-22349373\" srcset=\"https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2022\/05\/will-wilcox-10.jpg?quality=75&amp;strip=all&amp;w=1535 1536w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2022\/05\/will-wilcox-10.jpg?quality=75&amp;strip=all 1024w, https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2022\/05\/will-wilcox-10.jpg?quality=75&amp;strip=all&amp;w=512 512w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\"\/><figcaption>Wilcox\u2019s next aim is to get back his PGA Tour card.<\/figcaption><figcaption><span class=\"credit\">Roger Kisby for NY Post<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>Next, he will attempt to regain his PGA Tour card. \u201cI\u2019m lucky that I\u2019ve come out the other side and I haven\u2019t destroyed my organs and my body. I can still swing the club pretty well,\u201d said Wilcox, who is single and has no children.<\/p>\n<p>And if the golf doesn\u2019t work out then the\u00a035-year-old, now living in Moody, Ala., is happy to help spread the word about the dangers of drug abuse. \u201cI just want to raise some awareness about what kind of wild s\u2013t that\u2019s going on with kids these days,\u201d he said. \u201cThe number one cause of death for 18-40 year-old males in America is overdose and that\u2019s a big deal.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI should have died many times in my life but if I can stop anybody from going down that path then that\u2019s what I want to do.\u201d\n                        <\/p><\/div>\n<blockquote><p><strong><span style=\"color: #ff6600;\">If you liked the article, do not forget to share it with your friends. Follow us on\u00a0<span style=\"color: #ff0000;\"><a style=\"color: #ff0000;\" href=\"https:\/\/news.google.com\/publications\/CAAqBwgKMLG0nwswvr63Aw\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener noreferrer\">Google News<\/a><\/span>\u00a0too, click on the star and choose us from your favorites.<\/span><\/strong><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<blockquote>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\">For forums sites go to <span style=\"color: #ff9900;\"><a style=\"color: #ff9900;\" href=\"https:\/\/forum.buradabiliyorum.com\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Forum.BuradaBiliyorum.Com<\/a><\/span><\/strong>\n<\/p><\/blockquote>\n<blockquote>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><strong>If you want to read more <a href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/category\/news\/\" data-internallinksmanager029f6b8e52c=\"2\" title=\"News\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">News<\/a> articles, you can visit our <span style=\"color: #ff9900;\"><a style=\"color: #ff9900;\" href=\"https:\/\/en.buradabiliyorum.com\/news\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">News category.<\/a><\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p><span style=\"color: black;\"><a style=\"color: #ff9900;\" href=\"https:\/\/nypost.com\/2022\/05\/21\/pro-golfer-will-wilcox-i-spent-millions-on-heroin-2\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Source<\/a><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>&#8220;\u2018I spent millions on heroin\u2019&#8221; In June 2015, pro golfer Will Wilcox was standing on the green at the final hole of the\u00a0Fed-Ex St. Jude Championship in Memphis, Tenn. Ahead of him was a snaking 40-foot putt.\u00a0 Make it and there was a check for $114,000 waiting.\u00a0 Cool as you like, Wilcox stepped up and&#8230;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":450635,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2022\/05\/will-wilcox-06-1.jpg?quality=75&strip=all&w=1024","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[70897],"tags":[129494,71059,89490,35862,70609],"class_list":["post-450634","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-news","tag-5-21-22","tag-addiction","tag-heroin","tag-tiger-woods","tag-us-open-golf"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/450634","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=450634"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/450634\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/450635"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=450634"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=450634"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=450634"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}