To be good at golf means you have to put in a lot of time and effort into improving your playing skills. Not only that, but you also have to keep practicing repeatedly to get any significant improvement. This is why many professional golfers like those who play every day in the beautiful course of the Los Angeles Country Club have suffered from injury at one time or another. But even weekend golfers sustain injuries. Fortunately, most of these injuries are preventable.
Sports medicine experts say there are a number of factors that put a person at risk of injury such as:
- Over-practice
- Overuse
- Over-swinging
- Not warming up
- Rotational stresses
- Incorrect setup
- Incorrect grip
- Poorly executed swing
Back Pain
Approximately 75 – 85% of all Americans have suffered from back pain at least once in their lifetime. It may be much more common among golfers. The swing can trigger rotational stresses that put intense pressure on the spine. And when you add the fact that golfers spend 4-5 hours in a bent-over stance, it’s no surprise that playing golf can lead to back strains. Be sure to incorporate exercises that strengthen and stretch your back muscles.
Elbow Tendinitis
Tendinitis (inflammation of the tissues in the tendons) commonly affects the elbow hence the term “tennis elbow.” But there’s also a condition called “golfer’s elbow” which occurs in the inner tendon. A person’s risk of getting either tennis elbow or golfers elbow increases with age as well as those who often make repetitive movements including playing golf. An improper swing also aggravates the injury.
To treat tendinitis, the injured tendon needs to rest and heal. Avoid using these muscles to decrease inflammation and build strength.
Knee Pain
Extreme pressure placed on the knee (especially a weak knee) can tear up its ligaments. Those who have arthritis tend to suffer from knee pain due to the gradual wearing away of their knee’s joint cartilage. Knee pain treatment usually involves resting, stretching and icing the knee.
Rotator Cuff Pain
When you swing, you may experience pain in your arm or shoulder. Sometimes the pain may occur later in the day or even at night. Rotator cuff injuries can be sustained when an individual poorly executes a golf swing resulting in extreme pressure to the muscles in the arm or shoulder. Sometimes it may be a result of overuse of muscles.
Treatment may include intake of anti-inflammatory medication, and in some severe cases, may require surgery. To prevent rotator cuff injuries, you need to make sure you swing properly, and do some upper body strength exercises and warm ups.
Wrist Injuries
Golf’s repetitive motions and the high speed at which you swing can put your wrist at risk for injury. Tenderness and pain on the wrist are common and golfers could experience tendinitis at one or more instances in their career. You can prevent such injuries by engaging in a conditioning program before and during golf season.
Finger Injuries
Repetitive blunt trauma to the fingers can cause numerous conditions like broken or deformed bones, tendinitis and hypothenar hammer syndrome, or HHS. To prevent these issues, you need to avoid long periods of ball hitting, learning the proper grip, and as much as possible, avoid hitting balls off artificial mats.
Neck Injuries
New golfers, after several hours of swinging and hitting may suffer from neck pain or even a neck injury. This can be prevented by doing a proper warm up of the muscles and not overusing the muscles especially if you’re new to the sport.
Hip Injuries
The hip joint can usually withstand heavy stresses, but it could still get injured when playing golf, since the swing involves a lot of pivoting and twisting movements. It is the rotational and extreme force that lead to injuries. Again, warming up the muscles is necessary in order to prevent injury, along with strengthening exercises focused on the hip joint and socket.