Tiger Woods. A name that will be ingrained in the history of sports for decades to come. A man that has defined this new generation of sports. Whether you love him or hate him, Tiger Woods has been a small part of every sports fans’ life for the past two decades. No man or woman has had a bigger impact on their sport than Tiger Woods had with golf. That is why when news came out Tuesday morning that Woods was involved in a car accident, sports fans were stunned as they realized they almost lost another legend way too soon.
Woods was driving 30 miles south of Downtown LA when he was involved in a single-car roll-over collision. The LA Times reported that Woods was traveling “at a high rate of speed and lost control of the vehicle before crossing the center divider.” Los Angeles County Sheriff Alex Villanueva informed reporters that responders arrived on the scene minutes after the accident. First responders described Woods’ injuries as “trauma-level”. The Sheriff’s Department said in their statement that Woods “was extricated from the wreck with the ‘jaws of life’…” He was rushed to hospital shortly after to have immediate surgery. It was reported on Friday that Woods was “recovering and in good spirits” following his surgery.
This does not come at a good time for Woods as he was recovering from his most recent back surgery he had just a few months prior. The golfer has a long and hard road to recovery ahead of him. Dr. Jamie Hernandez, an orthopedic surgeon based in Southern California, estimated a six month to year long recovery before he can swing a golf club again. He continued to point out the mental trauma that someone goes through after an accident. Dr. Judy Rosenberg, director of the Psychological Healing Center in Sherman Oaks, said, “Emotionally, he’s got a road to recovery because there is no way he will not be experiencing post-traumatic stress disorder.”
With all this being said Woods is no stranger to playing through injuries. He was still able to finish runner up at the Masters while playing with two stress fractures in his calf. In fact one of the most famous moments in Woods’s career happened in 2008 at our local Torrey Pines golf course where Woods fractured a bone in his left leg during the second round of the US Open. Woods went on to win the tournament after playing through pain for the final two rounds.
What all this tells us is that Tiger Woods has defied the odds many times and risen as a champion. We are about to witness one of the best athletes of all time go through what could be his toughest challenge yet.