Can Tiger Woods Play 2019 and beyond without Missing Significant time due to his low back ?
Can Tiger stay healthy? This is the ultimate question.
I hear it from clients, from friends, and we used to hear it pretty significantly on TV before Tiger was truly back in the swing of things (pun intended) last year.
With his recent neck injury the larger questions still remains:
Can/ will Tiger’s back hold up? Will he stay healthy to beat Jack’s record? Will Tiger even win another major?
Tiger has had a tough run since 2009 in general, ( who can’t forget the Cadillac drama and all that came after on the family side of things) Then on the health side Tiger has had significant trouble since 2012 with back troubles galore. For many of us Tiger crazies, myself included, this whole saga has been a tough pill to swallow. Our star, our idol, and arguably the game’s greatest player had made poor decisions, was broken down, and couldn’t get or stay healthy.
We would be left hanging for several years. Each year thinking, ok, this could be it, this is the tournament he will feel better, this is the tournament where things make a turn. Those wishes and positive thoughts were quickly dashed away once you saw him writhing in pain after an errant tee shot. I always kept my hope, as most of us did, that Tiger would one day be healthy to play again and win again. Over those uncertain times, especially after his last procedure it was clear that Tiger had lost hope that he might one day play again.
Opening Thoughts on Back Pain
As a physical therapist who loves the game and loves Tiger this was rough to see. Far too many patients that deal with chronic low back pain lose hope after years of persistent pain with little recovery. They far too often get medical advice that is sub par. This poor advice and lack of help leaves people frustrated with the medical system. It can also lead to pictures and thoughts about their bodies and their spines that are highly detrimental to recovery and also flat our wrong. Terms such as “ threw my back out” “ I have the spine of an 80 year old” “ My back is full of arthritis” “ blown a disc” and so many more hurt our ability to recover.
These kinds of thought viruses and misrepresentations often only strengthen the chronic pain cycle and leads to further pain and disability.
Low back pain sucks!
Ask anyone who has had it. It can leave you feeling disheartened, fearful of movement, and leads you to question the future. I’m here to tell you though that no matter the circumstance that does not have to be the case!
Often times our pain and our imaging don’t line up.
Meaning your MRI can show lots of changes and you can be pain free, while some folks can have significant pain with a “normal” MRI.
The pain we experience is controlled by many variables!
Why Tiger can keep pain free and will be able to keep winning
First and foremost I must say that I do not personally know Tiger, nor do I know what physical limitations he may have. However, I do know that golfers can get back to golf after lumbar fusion. After all many amateur and weekend players have! We just don’t see it on the PGA Tour. According to a few studies study one and two there are a number of athletes that respond well to lumbar fusion and are able to return to sport close to or at their previous level of performance. ( We must take with a grain of salt due to minimal overall evidence) It is fair to say that returning to sport and golf though may be challenging is not as uncommon as we might have guessed.
Lets be clear before moving forward:
Spinal fusion surgery is and should always be a last resort for those dealing with low back pain.
Now lets get to the reasons why I believe Tiger’s back will hold up over the next 3-5 years:
Tiger can and will stay healthy at his low back because it is not uncommon for golfers to return to sport after lumbar fusion. It is also not uncommon for professional athletes to return to sport. Both Stacy Lewis and Tiger Woods are two known golfers to have lumbar fusion. Stacy had her surgery several years ago and appears to be doing well, now back playing after having a baby… INCREDIBLE! Also many recreational golfers are able to return to sport and golf after fusion.
Tiger has changed his swing again. Tiger’s current swing is closer to his swing in 2008 pre- Sean Foley. Tiger is a touch more upright, has a touch less squatting/ downward movement, and less separation between upper and lower in his current swing which all equals less crunch factor at impact as well as less shear force through and after impact.
2012
Far more side bend and upper/lower separation
2018
Much less side bend at impact, less overall separation of lower and upper at impact.
3. Tiger is on the other side of pain. What does this mean? This is BIG! The journey of chronic low back pain is extremely tough. Each day he gets behind him where his back holds up and feels good grows your confidence. Simply put when you have had so much pain and distress for years your brain doesn’t forget it. It takes many good days to start putting the past behind you. Emotionally and mentally Tiger appears to be in a much better and healthier place. His language about his back displays confidence in it and it appears that in general he is confident in how his low back can hold up to the grind of golf
4. Tiger now seems to appreciate that he needs to respect his body. This is a big one! For all of us! With the best technique but really poor practice habits, i.e. over practice and over training you can still get very hurt. With even poor technique and very good practice habits you can stay healthy. With improved technique for your body and great practice habits and lifestyle you can be your best!
It appears that Tiger is willing to give his body more time to recover and appreciates the process. You can hear it in Tiger’s language and specifically in his most recent new conference at the Players Championship this week.
5. He is a LEGEND. Tiger is absolutely one of the best to ever play the game. This takes an incredible amount of mental and physical gifts, which he undoubtedly has. This is a huge asset for him on his continued path to good health and golf and one of the big reasons why he can continue to do well!
6. He has a great team around him. Tiger and really most all PGA Tour players as well as other athletes build a great team around them to work on all things performance and recovery. This goes into practice schedule, sleep schedule, nutrition, strength and conditioning and beyond.
I can only hope that Tiger continues to stay healthy at his low back so we can all continue to enjoy seeing our favorite golfer get back to winning and dominating on tour. Tiger has had a long journey with back pain which happens to far too many folks, many of which don’t get the same level of care and outcomes that Tiger has been fortunate to achieve.
If you are struggling with low back pain yourself, know that you are not alone and know that you can absolutely get better!
If you are unsure about whether you need to see some regarding your pain the answer is probably yes. In the meantime check out this article which details when you need to get help.
Thanks for reading.
As always here’s to better golf,
Dr. James Ashcroft DPT, OCS, CSCS, TPI