On 24th July 2014, I received the results of my MRI scan for my left knee. Given this was six years on from rupturing my cruciate ligament in my right knee, I was adamant it was the same injury and I vowed never to go through that ever again!
Unfortunately, it was even worse than I expected. It had turned out my left knee had the following problems
- Complete tear of the Anterior Cruciate Ligament
- Abnormal appearance of the posterior horn of the medial meniscus
- Vertical tear of medial meniscus
- Grade 2 injury of the Medial Collateral Ligament
- Signal change in the posterior anchor of the lateral meniscus which may represent a meniscus contusion
- Small radial tear
- Ill defined bone marrow
- Small joint effusion
As the doctor read this out, I just looked at him. He was too nice and too posh to say f***ed but I knew he was thinking it. I remember saying I would NEVER EVER go through that post-op again and this would be even worse I imagine, given some of it may be open knee surgery. So I walked out of the surgery absolutely certain of one thing, footballing days were over. True enough, I have not played since and I do not miss it. I still consider whether or not I need to have the knee done because that is a big shopping list and I just have a feeling it will come and bite me in the future if I do not get it sorted. However, being self-employed, there is never a great time for this kind of thing so I will just have to see how it goes in the next few years.
Anyway, enough of my sob story regarding my knee. I have been meaning to learn to play golf since that day, and it is only in June 2015 that I finally bit the bullet and attended a lesson.
As I write this I have had 4 group lessons, and I am due to have an all-day group lesson this coming Sunday. I have practiced at the range, on the course (with bunker shots) and we are due to have a go at putting on Thursday.
I am notoriously impatient as I learnt during my driving tuition. I get frustrated when I do not grasp things quickly, and I have realised that the more frustrated I am with myself in golf, the more chance my next shot will be absolutely dreadful.
In the first week, I was able to hit it quite well but it felt so un-natural doing a full swing so I was doing little mini swings which is not ideal if I want to be decent at the sport. I have been using a training grip to get used to it also which has been helpful, all of the equipment I have been borrowing. My thinking was, I do not want to rock up with all the gear at the moment, given I am so terrible at it. Although, 2 weeks in, I have ordered a beginners set from the club shop. I vouch not to invest in the clothing or glove yet though!
The second week we have been getting used to the driver. I find this much tougher to be honest because I am always paranoid of smashing something or somebody when doing this baseball style swing. Still, at the end of my lesson this week I was starting to feel a little more comfortable with it.
The key things he has picked up with me at the moment is the tension in my stance and also my swing is not flowing yet. I am always turning towards the target at the end as part of ceremony rather than the flowing motion of the swing.
Still, I am determined to be the new Ian Woosnam. I have only had a total of two hours tuition so far, and I have rocked up to the range on the odd occasion. I am looking forward to the weekend and the few weeks before I head off travelling. I am determined to stick at and see it through. My real worry is the rubbish weather here means when I get back from Japan it will be September, and winter will be coming!
I will be tracking my progress (or lack of) here and I offer anybody who reads this signed merchandise when I am a pro golfer 😉
It’s never a good thing borrowing a glove. From experience the glove adds some vital grip, invest.
I’m not borrowing a glove mate, just not using one at the moment!