Common Golf Injuries

All sports tend to have injuries that go hand in hand with the sport; the problem becomes learning what is typical to occur and learning exactly how you can avoid the injuries in order to really ensure that you are as healthy and safe as possible out on the green.  One of the best things you can do for your body is of course make sure that you are in good physical condition before you play golf, but this is not always possible as you can imagine.  However if you take the time to ensure that you are in good physical shape you will greatly reduce the number of injuries that you are prone to have.

As you can imagine, with all of the walking and swinging that you do with clubs on the green back injuries are quite common.  However, aside from using muscle rubs, and ice packs or back braces simply taking the time to do proper conditioning of your back muscles can help to avoid these problems.  It is also important to ensure that you get the rest that you need following a game of golf to ensure that your back has the time to rest between activities that it needs.  If you play continuous games back to back, you may want to consider an occasional massage or even a chiropractic alignment.

Another common injury is tennis elbow, or more commonly called in golf – golfer’s elbow.  This typically results most often in players who are playing a lot suddenly.  However, there are a few minor differences between tennis and golfer’s elbow.  The primary difference is that tennis elbow impacts the outside of the upper arm, while golfer’s elbow impacts the inner arm.  While there is no specific way to avoid these injuries they are most often caused by suddenly playing a lot.  For example, if you typically play a single game a month then suddenly entered into a very long tournament you could potentially be at risk for developing either tennis elbow or golfer’s elbow.

As can be expected shoulder injuries also top the list of major problems for golfers.  You can just imagine the pressure that is put on the shoulders as you are swinging the clubs continuously.  Take a body that is tired or worn out in the least and you have a prime recipe for an injury.  To avoid this you need to ensure that you are warming up your shoulder muscles as much as possible before a game and work hard to ensure that you are taking proper care of your body. 

One other problem that tends to occur a lot is carpal tunnel syndrome.  This happens primarily due to repetition stress.  For example, if you play numerous games of golf in a row for several months straight you could be looking at a potential injury in progress.  The results of the injury can be quite serious at times, but if you are careful and catch it early typically just a brace will solve your problems.  However, serious cases of carpel tunnel can cause you to be incapacitated or even require surgery in order to use your hands appropriately.  The problem is that carpel tunnel syndrome can often give no serious signs until it appears and causes problems.  Always ensure that you wear a wrist brace if you start to notice that you are having serious wrist pain.