Ex-PGA Tour pro Casey Martin has right leg amputated: report

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Former PGA Tour golfer Casey Martin reportedly had his right leg amputated amid a battle with a rare circulatory disease that forced him to use a cart during events.

Martin, the current head coach of the Oregon Ducks men’s golf team, had his leg amputated above the knee at a Minnesota hospital on Friday, Golf Digest reported. Martin famously took his battle with the PGA Tour to use the cart to the Supreme Court in 2001. Citing the Americans with Disabilities Act, the Supreme Court ruled in favor of Martin 7-2.

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Casey Martin of the U.S. drives his golf cart on the first fairway during a practice round for the 2012 U.S. Open PGA golf tournament on the Lake Course at the Olympic Club in San Francisco, California June 11, 2012. Martin, who has a condition which makes it hard for him to walk long distances, won a landmark Supreme Court decision that allowed him to play with the use of a golf cart on the PGA tour. (REUTERS/Jeff Haynes)

Martin suffered from Klippel-Trenaunay-Weber syndrome, which hampered circulation in the lower portion of his right leg and made it nearly impossible for him to walk all 18 holes. He played well enough to earn a PGA Tour card in 2000 and qualified for the U.S. Open in 2012.

According to the report, Martin broke his right leg two years ago which led to the decision to amputate the leg after a cast and injections failed to heal the tibia completely.

FLASHBACK: JOHN DALY PROHIBITED FROM USING GOLF CART AT OPEN CHAMPIONSHIP

Tiger Woods (R) of the U.S. and Casey Martin of the U.S. walk off the 15th green during a practice round for the 2012 U.S. Open golf tournament on the Lake Course at the Olympic Club in San Francisco, California June 13, 2012. (REUTERS/Danny Moloshok )

"In many ways I exceeded what my doctors told me as a kid," Martin told Golf Digest two weeks ago. "I always felt this would be my destiny. So while it’s weird to be here now, about to become seriously disfigured, it’s not unexpected."

According to the magazine, Martin is "just happy to be alive."

Casey Martin of the U.S. watches his third shot on the 16th hole during the second round of the 2012 U.S. Open golf tournament on the Lake Course at the Olympic Club in San Francisco, California June 15, 2012.  (REUTERS/Robert Galbraith)

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Martin is in his 16th season with the Ducks. He is a two-time Pac-12 Coach of the Year and led the squad to multiple NCAA Championships appearances.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.