Golf Injuries

 

Golf is a popular sport and pastime for many professional, amateur, and junior players of all ages and genders. According to the National Golf Foundation, in 2004, there were over 16,000 golf facilities and almost 30 million golfers in the United States alone.

Since golf isn’t a sport that requires a player to briskly sprint, jump, or come into direct contact with other players, it’s often mistakenly considered a sport free of injuries. However, considering the average amateur golfer plays between 37 and 40 rounds of golf per year and spends countless hours practicing and perfecting their technique, golf has its fair share of injuries. Some studies have shown that as many as 40% of amateur golfers and 60% of professional golfers will suffer an injury at some point during their golfing play.

How Do Golfing Injuries Occur?

Generally speaking, golfing injuries can either be the result of a traumatic event or the cumulative result of overuse and repetitive use. While traumatic events, such as being hit in the face with a flying golf ball or a club during another player’s backswing can happen, statistics have shown that the majority of golf-related injuries are the result of overuse/repetitive use. Some studies have shown that as many as 80% of reported golf injuries are related to overuse, which isn’t a hard statistic to imagine when you consider that an average player will take over 100 swings, bend down 40 or more times, and can walk a number of miles over the course of a single round of golf.

The innate repetitive nature surrounding golf play and practice is the most common culprit of golf-related injuries among professional players. On the other hand novice players often suffer injuries due to the combination of improper body and swing mechanics. That said, regardless of whether a player is a professional or novice, any of the following factors can increase the risk of golf-related injuries:

* improper body mechanics (especially during swings)
* improper physical conditioning
* age of the player
* improper grip
* frequent mis-hits, duffs, and over-swings
* over-training (playing or practicing too hard, too long, or too frequently)
* failing to stretch and warm up prior to play

What Are Some Common Golfing Injuries?

Golfer’s Elbow

Golfer's elbow is medical known as medial epicondylitis. It’s an inflammatory condition that occurs on the inside of the elbow around a bump called the medial epicondyle. The wrist flexor muscles are located on the palm-side of the forearm and are attached to the common flexor tendon on the medial epicondyle. When the wrist is flexed, the hand grips, or the forearm is twisted down, the wrist flexors pull upon the common flexor tendon to pull the hand into the position. Repetitive wrist and forearm movements, such as when swinging and griping a golf club, place a high load on the wrist flexor muscles and the common flexor tendon. This can cause them to become inflamed; degenerate over time, and thicken as scar tissue forms.

Pain and tenderness on the inside of the elbow that may even spread down the forearm to the wrist is the primary symptom. Other symptoms of golfer’s elbow may include a weakened hand grip, elbow stiffness and weakness, elbow swelling, and numbness or tingling that radiates from the elbow to the fingers.

Lower Back/Lumbar Strains And Sprains

The lower back is also referred to as the lumbar area. This is a common area of injury for golfers, mainly from strains and sprains. While a strain is the abnormal stretching or tearing of a muscle or tendon and a sprain is the abnormal stretching or tearing of a ligament, the exact soft structure injured is often very difficult to isolate in injuries to the lower back.

In golf, the power of a swing is generated by a tightly coiled body, a large shoulder turn, and a more fixed hip position. This isn’t exactly a natural movement for the body to begin with, but as the player repetitively torques their back and hyperextends it during the follow-through, downswing, and back-swing, it can leave them highly vulnerable to abnormally stretching or tearing musculotendinous units and ligaments in the lumbar area. Other factors, such as lower back muscle fatigue and tight muscles, only contribute to the probability of a golfer suffering a sprain or strain to their lower back.

Depending on how badly the tendon, muscle, or ligament is stretched or torn, the golfer may experience a little back stiffness and swelling -to- abnormal and painful gait and obvious swelling. Both strains and sprains are graded based on the severity of the stretching or tearing to the tendon, muscle, or ligament:

Grade I - stretching or microscopic tearing of the fibers.
Grade II - moderate tearing of the fibers.
Grade III - significant to complete tearing of the fibers.

Rotator Cuff Tendinitis

The rotator cuff is found in the shoulder and is comprised of the supraspinatus, infraspinatus, subscapularis, and teres minor muscles and tendons. It’s primary purpose is to stabilize the shoulder by holding the head of the humerus inside the scapula at the shoulder joint.

The tendons of the rotator cuff may become irritated from the repetitive strain a golf swing places on the shoulder and become inflamed, tender, and painful. Range of motion may also be limited. Generally, rotator cuff overuse injuries occur in the lead arm. Age, weak or tight shoulder muscles, poor physical conditioning, improper swing technique, and over-training can increase a player's risk of rotator cuff tendinitis.

Chronic rotator cuff tendonitis can eventually lead to rotator cuff strains if it isn't treated properly. Another concern is impingement syndrome, as the already swollen tendons become trapped in the subacromial space beneath the top of the shoulder and swell to an even greater degree.