Australian golfer Marc Leishman has revealed how a bizarre reaction to medication for a misdiagnosed bed bug attack made him an angry man on the course.
Gearing up for one of his favourite tournaments last month at Torrey Pines, Leishman suffered what doctors believed to be a spider bite.
The antihistamines supplied turned the usual laidback golfer into a rage machine, with his anger affecting his play and contributing to a missed cut at an event where he'd been runner-up twice.
"It was really weird, the meds made me angry and aggro on the course, it was just terrible," Leishman said.
"I'm not an angry person at all and I was just not myself and I didn't know why but as soon as I got off the antihistamines the anger and short fuse went away."
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The Victorian was not staying at the lodge where most players stay, rather the same hotel he's been at for eight years, preferring to keep to his routine given his previous form at the event.
"I didn't know it was bed bugs until the following week when Audrey's (wife) doctor figured it out," he said.
"It was disappointing to not be at my best but no excuses, I am ready to play well this week and start trending in the right direction heading towards Florida and then the Masters."
The world No.30 tees it up in the US PGA Tour event at Riviera Country Club in Los Angeles on Thursday prepared to play the old-school course with a bit more respect than in the past.
A traditional happy hunting ground for Australians, Riviera has not been so kind to him with his best finish in six attempts a tie for 15th back in 2010.
"I like to play aggressive but here I know you have to play smarter and pick your moments," he said.
"I was playing with Aaron Baddeley here in 2011 when he won and he just plodded along in the opening two rounds, playing smart, and then he wins. This course always holds up well."
With Baddeley, Adam Scott (2005) and Robert Allenby (2001) in the field, Australia takes three past winners into the event.
Riviera is also the course Steve Elkington conquered for his lone major, the 1995 PGA Championship.
Stuart Appleby, Steven Bowditch, Geoff Ogilvy, Matt Jones, John Senden, Cameron Smith, Jarrod Lyle and Rhein Gibson round out the 12-strong Aussie contingent.
