Massage Therapy Canada

Products
Tiger Woods: Back injury made him wonder if he would play golf again

tigerwoods.jpgMay 20, 2014 – Tiger Woods still doesn't know when he'll return. For a while, he didn't know whether he would return at all.

On Monday, Woods said his back injury became so debilitating this year it caused him to doubt his ability to play golf again.

May 20, 2014  By Joseph White The Associated Press


“Forget about playing golf at the highest level. I couldn’t get out of
bed,” Woods said. “I was certainly doubtful at that point. What’s it
going to feel like? Am I going to be pain free? Am I going to be able to
actually do this again, where I can to get out of bed, and go out there
and play with my kids and play golf? All those things were up in the
air.

Woods said the doubt was erased after microdiscectomy
surgery March 31. He said the procedure, which relieved pain from a
pinched nerve, provided immediate relief, although he said there’s still
“no timetable” for his return to golf – or even for taking a full
swing. As of now, he remains limited to chipping and putting.

 “It’s
not going to be up to me whether I play or not, it’s going to be up to
my docs,” Woods said. “Obviously, I want to play now.”

Speaking
at Congressional Country Club, in Bethesda, Md., in his role as host of
next month’s Quicken Loans National, Woods even joked that he wished he
could join reporters on the course for their media day rounds – “even
though I don’t like to play with you guys.”

Advertisement

But he offered no
hint that he might be anything more than an onlooker for the Quicken
Loans tournament on June 26-29 – or at the U.S. Open at Pinehurst two
weeks earlier. He’s already missed the Masters for the first time.

To
hear Woods, known for unyielding resolve, give voice to doubts is
certainly unusual. But this injury is different from those he has
endured before. He said rehab has been tedious and it’s a challenge
simply not to join in when his children want to play sports.

“I’ll tell you what,” he said, “I am damn good at video games.”

When
Woods does return, he’ll resume his pursuit of Jack Nicklaus’ record of
18 major victories. Woods, 38, sounded as if the surgery has given him a
new lease to keep playing for a good while.

“I would like to, as
all athletes, go out on my own terms,” Woods said. “And ultimately I
want to continue playing at an elite level as long as I deem I want to
do it. For some guys it’s in their 60s and 70s, and other guys it’s in
their 40s and 50s.

“But prior to the surgery, I didn’t think I
would have much of a playing career if I felt like this… Now that I’ve
had the procedure, I’m excited about what the prospects hold, and if I’m
able to feel this way, I’m excited about my career. I’m able to do what
I want to do for as long as I want to.” (Photo credit: Debby Wong / Shutterstock.com)


Print this page

Advertisement

Stories continue below


Related