Tiger seriously couldn’t have finished his round on the North course at Torrey Pines, to the point of having to withdrawal mid-round once again due to spasms in one of his gluteal muscles?
We’ll try to shed light on this grueling interrogation, a topic that has been under close speculation in the US, just like the rest of the golf world.
– First off, it’s important to put ourselves in the shoes of someone who has evidently suffered multiple and various types of injuries in the past couple years. Any bad movement, any slight sign of pain, alarms go off. It’s normal, then, that Woods thinks of the worst that could happen and looks for a conservative or preventative out. But it’s more than likely, if not for sure, that the core of the matter is not so simple…
– Because it’s a common mistake to dissociate the mental and physical elements of an elite athlete. However, for example, it’s no coincidence that the injuries are multiplied in teams who whose dynamic of outcomes is negative. Simply put: stress or anxiety can partially block normal muscular functions and immediately multiply the risk of small injuries. These are the indecipherable and damaging vicious circles of elite sports. A physical ailment can throw the mind off balance which, at the same time, can ruin an excellent physical condition. The difference is always noted in having balance. The mind (or if we prefer: the subjectivity and balancing of emotions) and the rest of the body don’t function independently of each other, rather there are real communicating vessels going to and from one another. Almost tangible connections, one could say, according to experiences of personal trainers, physical therapists, osteopaths, and doctors in general. Looking at it from that perspective, the hype about Tiger Woods’s zillionth withdrawal in a competition round almost begins to fade away: it’s not as important if the spasms are incapacitating as it is getting to the heart of the matter: ¿what are the exact origins of Tiger’s pains?
– The threshold of pain of each individual cannot be measured. At least not to an exact point. And it’s not the same in a person who experiences it in a stable and continuous way either. Let’s not forget that this same golfer won the Torrey Pines tournament itself in the US Open, in a much worse physical state than before any other injury that he suffered thereafter. His pain threshold, during that time, was much higher than the signals his nervous system was sending through his battered (almost destroyed) left knee. Now, however, that level is at rock-bottom, thus it shouldn’t be taken lightly.
– The origin of Tiger Woods’s problems isn’t in his gluteal muscle, nor in his back. And from that point of view, as far I understand, there is no room for harsh criticism in his decision to withdrawal from the round on the 11th hole.
– It would be a whole separate issue to delve into whether or not this extraordinary champion athlete has truly found the best path toward the longed for balance, because on occasion, when one reads or hears the things they say and how they’re said, it transmits a suspicious sensation of opting for a forward-looking escape.
