The Ryder Cup, golf’s most high-profile team competition, gets under way in Gleneagles on 23 September. However, those wishing to see former world No.1 golfer Tiger Woods in action will be disappointed, as he withdrew from the US Ryder Cup team recently due to a back injury.
The 38-year-old has been advised by his doctors to halt competing and practicing, to allow his back muscles rehabilitate and heal. Woods is not expected to return until the World Challenge, set to start on 4 December. Woods told the PGA of America and US team captain Tom Watson that he did not wish to be picked, saying he was ‘extremely disappointed’.
Woods has not won a major trophy since the US Open in 2008, and the withdrawal from the Ryder cup will now extent his trophy wait.
The injury followed a shot from an awkward stance on the edge of a bunker on the 2nd hole at the WGC-Bridgestone Invitational in Akron, Ohio. He later received surgery on his back in an attempt to fix a damaged nerve that had been causing spasms. Since then he has struggled to recover both form and fitness, missing the cut in the Quicken Loans National and finishing 69th in the British Open at Royal Liverpool.
According to a BMJ article co-authored by the ISEH’s Dr Roger Hawkes, the wrists, back, shoulders and hips are the most commonly injured regions in professional golfers, with the leading side more frequently affected. High swing velocities and rapid trunk rotation may explain the frequency of injuries relating to the spine. A quarter of injuries in professional golfers result in prolonged absence from competition.
The facilities and expertise available at the ISEH means the institute is well placed to treat a wide range of golf injuries in professional and recreational players alike. For more information or to make an appointment please contact us.
Image: Action Images / Paul Childs