Become a ‘golf doc’ and a hero to weekend hackers
By Jeff Blanchard, DC

In the United States, it is estimated that more than 27 million people play the game of golf and, as shocking as it seems, they incur a reported 13.5 million golf-related injuries each year.

Many of these injuries stem from physical limitations, such as degenerative arthritis, loss of muscular elasticity demonstrated in decreased flexibility, and improper swing mechanics.

Amateurs — people you are most likely to treat — suffer most often from low-back pain due to a lack of golf-specific flexibility, and elbow pain due to a collapse of the forward arm during the backswing.

Professionals have other injuries. They are more likely to have wrist pain from hitting shots out of the deep rough or low-back pain from overworking.

You can (and do) treat these injuries. But you also have the opportunity to work with patients to prevent them from injuring themselves.

To be effective with golf-specific injuries requires training to recognize the injuries, treat them appropriately, and help patients prevent their recurrence.

Injuries that occur in golf are sport-specific and cannot be diagnosed and treated as any other sprain, especially if that patient expects to be competitive.

The following case study illustrates the importance of the specialized training of a “golf doc”:

A 48-year-old male presented with a history of pain in the right groin, aggravated when playing golf. The patient stated he had seen several different healthcare providers during the 18 months prior to coming to see his chiropractor. Each healthcare provider treated his painful adductor.

Each provider focused on the area of complaint and rendered adequate treatment. Each time after treatment, as long as the patient stayed away from the golf course, he was “fine.” Unfortunately, as soon as he returned to practicing and playing golf, his groin pain returned.

The patient’s chiropractor, trained as a golf-injury specialist, knew golf patients are subject to groin pain if they have an unstable pivot, specifically during the backswing motion.

To treat the patient, the DC asked him to swing a golf club a few times. The DC knew body weight must remain on the inside of the back foot, and the back knee must be able to hold its positional alignment over the back ankle.

Watching the patient swing the club, the DC saw his body weight roll to the outside of the back foot while his back knee rotated away from the target during the backswing. The patient’s golf swing was part of his groin problem.

Because of an unstable pivot, the patient was at risk of injury during the downswing motion. The “golf doc” knew the correction protocols for the condition and solved the case.

The groin is only one of 14 separate anatomical areas of the body that are golf-specific for flexibility and/or strength. Each of these 14 areas has correction protocols.

GETTING REFERRALS

To build your golf-injury practice:

• Get trained. Acquire the training necessary to become an expert in identifying and dealing with golf-specific injuries.

• Take golf lessons. Taking lessons will let you get to know the PGA instructors at your local golf course. And, lessons will establish you as someone who is interested in the game.

• Get to know the golf professionals on their turf. When the time is right, invite them to your office. (This is easy as they all have physical problems of their own.)

• Assess and correct their golf-related problems. Granted, this is not a quick-hit promotional strategy for acquiring new patients. However, if, over time, the PGA instructors can trust you to understand golf-related injuries, golf-specific fitness, and conditioning, then you have a long-term, reliable referral base.

Jeff Blanchard, DC, is a chiropractor who plays professional golf. He is the author of The Physician’s Golf Injury Desk Reference (Jones and Bartlett Publishers, 2007). He can be reached at 805-772-8298 or www.GolfInjurySeminars.com.