Quote:
Originally Posted by Villages PL
There was some talk about Tiger Woods having a back problem and I heard a doctor talking about it on the news. He said it's not that uncommon for golfers to injure their back because the golf swing is not natural. I think he means it twists the back in ways that are unnatural. Throughout most of history, man did not swing a golf club, so we are not designed for it.
It doesn't mean that everyone will get a back injury from playing golf. It just means you will raise your risk for getting a back injury. And I assume the risk increases as we age.
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That may well be the case for "some", but here is a truly inspirational story about a young golfer.....and her journey prior to playing golf......and out of all the sports, it turned out that golf was the easiest on her body. Plus, I would add that her passion for the sport, no doubt helps her immune system.
Kristy McPherson is a professional golfer who was diagnosed with systemic-onset juvenile arthritis at age 11. She is currently playing on the LPGA Tour. She has said she took up golf because after being diagnosed, she was no longer able to play sports that involved running and jumping -
Diagnosed with juvenile theumatoid arthritis as a child, Kristy is an inspiration to those who suffer from it and serves on the board of directors of the Arthritis National Research Foundation.
When just 11 years old, Kristy McPherson came home from school one day and felt something in the back of her leg pop. She then developed a rash on her body and in her throat.
"It all happened very fast," the 32-year-old pro golfer says. "One day I was fine and the next, I couldn’t walk. My body felt as if I had aged 50 years overnight, and all I wanted was to be a kid and go outside and play."
Finding medical answers for her problem wasn’t easy, because joint pain can stem from many conditions, including fractures, infections, congenital defects and arthritis. It took doctors 5-1/2 years to diagnose McPherson with juvenile rheumatoid arthritis (JRA). The verdict left her reeling.
"My doctors told me I probably wouldn’t be able to play any sport that required running or jumping," says McPherson, a South Carolina native. "Until that day, I had played every sport possible, and it was hard to imagine [an inactive] future."
McPherson, who suffered from severe pain and stiffness, was hospitalized for three months and home-schooled for the rest of sixth grade, as she learned how to walk again.
"It took a few days before the initial flare-up got under control," McPherson says. "The whole 11-1/2 months afterward was pretty painful, but the first 5-1/2 months was the worst until they got me on the right prescription drugs to help the pain."
Still unable to participate in softball and basketball, her dad would carry her to a local golf course so she could ride in the golf cart and watch him play, McPherson recalls.
McPherson then started playing golf seriously her freshman year in high school.
"I had played golf since I was 8, but played other sports too," she says. "Golf was my least favorite of all the sports – but after getting RA, it was the easiest on my body and I discovered a great passion for the game."
McPherson’s skills on the golf course led to a scholarship at the University of South Carolina, and then a spot on the Futures Tour, the training league for the Ladies Professional Golf Association (LPGA).
McPherson, now celebrating her seventh year on the LPGA tour, is a fierce competitor and refuses to rheumatoid arthritis hold her back. She played on the team that won the Solheim Cup tournament in 2009 and appeared on the Golf Channel’s reality show "The Big Break VI."