Tiger Woods Undergoes Second Microdiscectomy on Back

September 23, 2015September 23, 2015 / Thomas Cohn, MD

Tiger Woods went under the knife again recently, opting to have a second microdiscectomy operation preformed on his ailing back.

The surgery means that Woods will withdraw from the final three scheduled events he had on his calendar, and it brings another disappointing season to a close. Woods failed to contend in any of the year’s four majors and he missed five cuts in 2015. Woods announced on Friday that he hopes to return to competitive golf in “early 2016.”

“This is certainly disappointing, but I’m a fighter,” Woods said. “I’ve been told I can make a full recovery, and I have no doubt that I will.”

This is the second time Woods has undergone the intricate operation on his back. His first microdiscectomy was back in March of 2014, and he only competed in seven events that season.

Surgery and Looking Ahead

Woods said on his personal website that he pursued a second back surgery after feeling pain and discomfort in his back and hips in recent weeks. Woods is used to playing through some discomfort after undergoing a host of operations throughout the course of his career, but the spinal compression came as surprise, as he had recently committed to playing in three tournaments to round out the year.

“He committed, thinking it was going to be a regular checkup,” said Woods’ agent, Mark Steinberg. “Obviously, that area where he had the microdiscectomy had to be treated again. And it leads us to where we are now.”

The microdiscectomy operation removed a small disk fragment in his back that was compressing a nerve, which was the source of his pain. Woods announced that he “will begin intensive rehabilitation and soft tissue treatment within a week,” adding that “healing and recovery times differ for each individual based on many physiological factors, but Tiger is encouraged he can return early in 2016.”

Dr. Cohn Comments

Here’s the deal with Tiger Woods. At this stage in his career, the only thing on his mind is chasing Jack Nicklaus on the career major’s list. Jack finished with 18, and Tiger currently sits at 14.

Tiger said he hopes to return to competitive golf by early 2016, but let’s be honest, he doesn’t care about the Sony Open of the Farmers Insurance Open. Tiger Woods wants to be back and healthy for The Masters, golf’s first major in 2016, which takes place in April. Obviously Tiger would like to get some rounds in before April, but I don’t expect to see him playing in minor tournaments in January or even early February. He’s always stuck to his schedule, and I believe his ultimate goal is to have his body and his short game in their best form at Augusta National.

That’s easier said than done, however. Tiger Woods will turn 40 in December, and unlike a fine wine, athletes don’t typically get better with age. Tiger has been playing golf professionally for more than half of his life, and although it’s less physical than football, it still takes a big toll on your body. What’s more, the smallest imperfections in your body can cause you to hit the ball a long distance from where you’re aiming, so pain and discomfort is less than ideal for an athlete who depends on precision. When you consider his age, his health and the formidable foes he has in young players like Rory McIlroy, Jordan Speith and Jason Day, I think it will be incredibly difficult for Tiger to win one more major, let alone catch Jack.

I wish him the best in his recovery, and I hope we can once again catch a glimpse of the golfer that took the world by storm back in the late 90’s and early 2000’s.

Back Pain Can’t Keep Tiger Woods From The Masters

April 8, 2015 / Thomas Cohn, MD

Tiger Woods will end his nine week hiatus from professional golf this week as he prepares to tee up for the Masters.

Tiger’s 2015 season got off to a rough start when he missed the cut in his first event and withdrew from his second event with back pain. After withdrawing in his second tournament, Tiger decided to take some time off to get his head and health in the right position to complete for a major championship.

I actually predicted that Tiger would take some time off after withdrawing from a tournament in early February. After that tournament, Tiger had withdrawn from 7 of his last 9 tournaments, which is unheard of in today’s game. Instead of continuing to play through the pain and just hoping things got better, Tiger decided to step away from the game and focus on getting his body right.

When asked about his rehab and strength conditioning leading up to the Masters, Woods said that he “worked his ass off. That’s the easiest way to kind of describe it. I worked hard.”

The Importance of Exercise As We Age

Exercise is important at any age, but it’s even more important as we get older. Tiger Woods turns 40-years-old this year, and he can no longer get by on his talent alone, especially when his body is breaking down from years of strenuous twisting and torquing. He’s had documented problems with his back, knees and shoulder, and although he would ideally take more than nine weeks off, he made the right choice to leave the tour and re-work his health and his game.

As I always tell my patients, there is no magical pill or injection that will completely cure you of your condition. Many options provide short-term or temporary relief, but patients also need to put in work in the form of exercise, physical therapy and rehabilitation. It’s not going to be easy, but it’s going to be worth it. This quote from Woods perfectly exemplifies that notion.

“People would never understand how much work I put into it to come back and do this again,” Woods said. “But it was sunup to sundown, and whenever I had free time; if the kids were asleep, I’d still be doing it, and then when they were in school, I’d still be doing it. So it was a lot of work.”

Despite his return to the course, I stand by my prediction from back in February. I believe Woods is more likely to withdraw or miss the cut than to be in serious contention in Sunday. Based on his quotes, it truly sounds like his health and his game are in their best forms of the year, but he’s still not 100%. I believe the tournament means a lot to Tiger, and barring significant back pain, I think he’ll go without withdrawing at Augusta, but the competition is fierce, and I just think Tiger will be fighting to make the cut instead of trying to get in Sunday’s final grouping. I wish him and the rest of the field the best of luck at the Masters this weekend.

Related source: Bloomberg

Ailing Tiger Woods Hopes to be Ryder Cup Pick

August 12, 2014August 12, 2014 / Thomas Cohn, MD

Tiger Woods was able to play through some back discomfort during golf’s final major of the season last week, but he struggled to find a rhythm and missed the cut after posting a +7 through 36 holes.

Many in the golf community believe Woods will take some time off to give his surgically repaired back some rest, but the 14-time major winner hopes to play in next month’s Ryder Cup. Sources say Woods has spoken with USA Ryder Cup captain Tom Watson about a spot on the team, and Watson has been open about Tiger’s chances.

“Tiger said to me: I want you to pick me,” Watson said. “I will continue to speak with Tiger over the next three weeks to monitor his situation. He has not been playing well but I think it’s been a result, as you well know, of his injury and his coming back from back surgery.”

Aside from the nine golfers who automatically qualify for a spot on the Ryder Cup team based on last year’s earnings, each side’s captain is allowed to make three “wildcard” selections. The wildcard selections can be any player regardless of earnings or World Rank.

The nine American golfers who have earned a spot on the team are Phil Mickelson, Bubba Watson, Rickie Fowler, Jim Furyk, Jimmy Walker, Matt Kuchar, Jordan Spieth, Patrick Reed and Zach Johnson. Only Furyk, Kuchar, Watson and Mickelson are ranked ahead of Woods in the current World Golf Rankings. Watson’s wildcard selections are due by September 2.

Comes Down to Health

Watson said he would continue to talk to Tiger about his progression from back surgery, noting that in the end it will come down to Tiger’s health.

“The most important thing is his health. I’ve said it consistently all the way through the issue with Tiger. If he’s healthy and is playing well, I’ll pick him,” said Watson. “Right now, his health is not good. Whether that can change in the next three weeks, as I said, I’ll monitor the situation. I’ll be talking with him and as far as his playing in concerned, I’ll monitor that as well.”

Based on Watson’s words, Woods may be stuck between a rock and a hard place. He needs to prove that his game is up to par, but continuing to play with a less-than-100-percent back could worsen the injury. He certainly won’t want to withdraw from the Ryder Cup during the competition, so Woods will have to be sure he can make it through the grueling competition.

As someone who helps patients with back pain on a regular basis, I know how crippling back pain can be to everyday activities, let alone sport at the highest level. If I had to take a guess at how this situation would play out, I’d bet that Tiger tells Watson that he will remove his name for consideration for selection. It’s obvious that Tiger wants to play, but I think he realizes he needs the rest if he wants to have his best chance at chasing down Jack Nicholas’ record of 18 majors. Tiger won’t want to deal with the media frenzy that would occur if Watson decided not to select him to the team, so I believe he’ll withdraw his name from consideration to remove that decision from Watson’s metaphorical plate.

Tiger Woods Out Of U.S. Open With Back Pain

May 29, 2014June 23, 2014 / Thomas Cohn, MD

Tiger Woods will not play in next month’s U.S. Open as he’s still rehabbing from lumbar microdiscectomy surgery he underwent back on March 31. Woods made the announcement on his website earlier this week.

“Unfortunately, I won’t be [at the U.S. Open] because I’m not yet physically able to play competitive golf,” Woods said. “I’d like to convey my regrets to the USGA leadership, the volunteers and the fans that I won’t be at Pinehurst. The U.S. Open is very important to me, and I know it’s going to be a great week. Despite missing the first two majors, and several other important tournaments, I remain very optimistic about this year and my future.”

While the move may come as a surprise to some, I’m not that shocked. As I hypothesized earlier on the blog, it simply seemed like too short of a timetable for Woods to make a return to professional golf. While the rehab is fairly quick, a person usually needs three months to regain normal activity. The U.S. Open will begin roughly two and a half months after Woods underwent the back operation, and he doesn’t want to take any chances when it comes to his health. As I said back in April, a more realistic return date would be in July, perhaps ahead of The Open Championship in late July.

Woods wouldn’t speculate on when he’d return to the course.e

“There’s no date, there’s no timetable, just taking it day by day and just focusing on trying to get stronger and come back,” said Woods during a media day last week. “I want to play today, but that’s just not going to happen. So just taking it step by step.”

Woods underwent a lumbar microdiscectomy back in March, which is a minimally invasive surgery used to remove a small portion of an offending disc. Patients can walk just days after the operation, but swinging a golf club is a different story, especially when you consider the force and precision needed to preform at the highest level. Last time I wrote about Woods, I guessed he’d miss The U.S. Open, but I’m going out on a hunch and saying that he’ll be back in time for The Open Championship, a place where he’s won three times.

Related sources: TigerWoods.com, ESPN

Woods Undergoes Surgery For Lumbar Microdiscectomy

April 9, 2014December 11, 2015 / Thomas Cohn, MD

Augusta National Golf Club will have a different feel to it when golf’s first major gets underway tomorrow as its most polarizing figure, Tiger Woods, won’t be in attendance. Instead, he’ll be recovering from a recent back surgery.

Tiger Woods has been having back problems for over a year. The initial reports said he was only dealing with a bulging disc that would not need surgery, but this week it was announced that Tiger underwent an operation called a Microdiscectomy since conservative care failed. Since we can only make educated guesses as to what is wrong, we can give only a basic primer on Tiger and lumbar pain management.

Woods’ Woes

Hopefully Tiger is only dealing a single lumbar disc problem. This type of injury and corresponding surgery is best only for pain into the leg caused by an isolated herniated lumbar disc. He has tried the basics; rest, physical therapy, working with another golf pro on body mechanics, and medications to control pain and back spasms. It sounds like he has also tried injections, and despite all these efforts, he is still having issues. The latest MRI scan of his back showed a disc herniation bumping a nerve root that is most likely the cause of his pain. After not being able to play up to his usual standards, Tiger decided it was time to consider surgery.

A Microdiscectomy is a minimally invasive surgery, often using only a small incision of about an inch in length. Using special tools, the surgeon removes a small portion of bone, possibly a joint, and the offending piece of disc. The surgery is usually done as a hospital inpatient operation with an overnight stay to monitor for complications. The patient should be up and active within a day, and often has significantly improved leg pain. This stands to reason, as Tiger didn’t announce that he had undergone surgery until a few days after the operation, and the media was none the wiser. If one does not perform heavy work, returning to employment can occur within a week.

Complications and Rehab

As with any surgery, especially back surgery, there are risks of complications. In properly selected patients, success is at about 90 percent. Spinal fluid leaks, infection, recurrent disc problems, scar tissue, and ongoing pain may be seen despite surgery. The surgery will only be successful for very select group of patients who have failed all conservative care. It will not cure back problems that are related to multi-level disc problems.

The rehabilitation from a Microdiscectomy surgery is fairly rapid. Activity including stretching and walking is encouraged within a week. Guided strengthening and back exercises are often reasonable to start within a month. By three months post surgery, most activity should be possible if treatment has been successful.

Hopefully Tiger will be able to return to golf within three months. Looking at the timetable, that puts his return right around the U.S. Open, which is historically played on the third weekend in June. A more reasonable projection would be that he could return for The Open Championship, which takes place in late July.

Time will only tell what more may happen with his back. Since professional golf at the highest level is very demanding, hopefully this surgery will work and there will not be any complications. If Tiger retires, we will know, it was not the perfect cure.