As I lay in a hospital bed, pumped full of morphine, I was insistent on 2 things. One, I didn’t want a poop bag. Two, I was going to Sweetens at the end of July and I didn’t care what anyone else said.
The good news is I don’t have a poop bag still, the bad news is I missed the trip to Sweetens. In June, I ended up hospitalized. Septic due to a tear in my colon. I was back in the hospital three weeks later with an abscess (I don’t like to brag, but it was 10cm. Apparently that’s big!). Now I’m waiting to see a specialist, get booked for surgery and start recovering. Likely, my next round of golf will be in 2024.
I think it’s fairly obvious I am obsessed with golf. It’s something I write about, think about and try to do almost every day of my life. Six weeks in, and I find myself still thinking about golf, just from a much more remote vantage point. The flame still burns, but I’m aware I’m a long way from getting back on the golf course.
While I was down, I stumbled into other ways to kill time and money. I got obsessed with Japanese knives, and ordered myself a nakiri (it’s awesome.) While going down that rabbit hole, I realized I need to know how to sharpen knives, so I’m the proud owner of a whetstone that I vaguely know how to use. I also ordered myself a fancy gator skin wallet, custom made.
These have been poor distractions for me. I’d rather be golfing. It’s nice to have an insanely sharp knife at my disposal, and I’m interested in learning how to keep it that way. Golf is still the first thing on my mind, even if I know it’s 8 months before my next handicapped round.
So what do you do when you can’t swing a club? Here is what I’ve done.
Signed up for lessons with Chase Davis, my putting coach. He and I had a chat in between hospital stays, and I’m finally back to a point where I can get on the putting green. It’s a welcome distraction and I’m hoping to come into next year as a good putter. It won’t be for lack of trying, as I have nothing better to do right now!
Jayson, my Canadian swing coach, also dropped by my house on the way to Sweetens and gave me some off the ball work to focus on. Things like posture, grip and backswing. All things I can do in my downtime, and hopefully build some better habits as I recover. Posture has been big with both Jayson and Chase, so this is a good opportunity to improve it.
I am in a weird spot. I’d love to play golf, but I physically can’t. I have a long road of recovery ahead of me, and so I’m trying to productively channel my obsession. Using time on the putting green to help rebuild my overall stamina. Making plans for workouts to regain my strength, but with a direct focus on helping my golf swing. It’s certainly not where I want to be, but it is where I am. I am trying to make the best of it.
I am finally feeling good enough to write again, and will hopefully keep some updates coming. My focus is much tighter, as my health and my family are my top priorities, and golf is the distraction I use to keep moving forward. We will see what comes of it as time progresses!
Enjoyed the read. Made me laugh. Hope the recovery is going well
#lglg Hope you get better soon and can make it to the invitational.