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Improved Golf Swing Mechanics May Equal Fewer Injuries
Jan 17, 2011
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Every golfer has done it.
They’ve tried to make up for a bad tee-ball by hitting the green with a miracle shot from deep rough. Most everyone has also endured the sudden, intense wrist pain caused by an unnaturally hard and fast swing that catches too much grass and turf, and too little ball.
While that’s an extreme, but all too common, example, it is illustrative of how golf wrist injury occur on the golf course. Even tee-shots and balls hit from the fairway, if combined with certain abnormalities in the golf swing, can cause unnecessary injury. According to Dr. Wiliam J. Bryan, orthopedic surgeon with the Methodist Center for Sports Medicine in Houston, Texas, a few changes in the golf swing can significantly reduce a golfer’s chance for painful wrist injury.
One of the easiest of Dr. Bryan’s suggestions to implement is slowing down the back swing, which will lessen the whip on the wrist. Also, flattening the back swing has advantages. According to Dr. Bryan, “This will decrease the chances that the club will come down, hit the ground and take a big divot.” Reducing the impact that sometimes comes with a deep divot will, of course, lessen the trauma to the wrist. Normal divots, and even deep ones, shouldn’t normally cause immediate injury. Repeated significant impact, as with a deep divot, can cause wrist injuries normally associated with overuse, such as tendonitis, in the lead hand primarily.
Another suggested change is keeping the hands in parallel alignment. “The alignment of your hands can also contribute to wrist pain. Whether you use the overlapping, interlocking, or the ten-fingered grip, it’s imperative that both hands be in parallel alignment,” says Dr. Bryan, a PGA consulting physician. Without such alignment, the wrist will be prevented from achieving their natural motion, which may contribute to injury.
Changes in equipment can also ease injury. Bryan recommends switching from steel-shafted clubs to graphite, which decreases the weight of the club and thereby lessens the stress on the wrists during the swing. Also recommended is thicker grips, which will help alleviate the pain associated with tendonitis and arthritis.
Although the two don’t seem to be related, developing a strong core can reduce wrist injury. Dr. Bryan states that a weak core will cause a golfer to use the wrists to throw the club at the ball without much use of the body. Strong core muscles will engage the larger muscle groups and enable the body to help swing the club, and often get better results with less injury.
Take all wrist pain seriously. “If you begin to experience pain in your wrist, take a couple of weeks off," Bryan said. “Sometimes rest is the best medicine.” It should also go without saying that any changes in your swing should be done under the supervision of a golf professional.
Source: Methodist Center for Sports Medicine, Houston, Texas
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