Golf and My Road to Recovery

[Topper]

INTRO

Many of you may have viewed another thread and know that I was recently diagnosed with a relatively rare medical condition with no known cause and no cure.  The result is that I experience constant vertigo which feels like I'm walking on the deck of a boat that's gently rocking in the waves which can increase with sudden head movements.  I also have a constant, loud high-pitch dial tone sound in my head that originates from the affected ear.  I am still seeking answers and consulting with other medical experts, but the outlook isn't very good at this point.  My wife has been incredible and I am fortunate to have married her.

My condition is not the purpose of this thread.  This thread is more to document it's impact on my ability to golf and how I can learn to golf in spite of my new limitations and hopefully use golf to better manage my condition.  Maybe others who have medical conditions or disabilities will relate or benefit from my efforts. I hope so.  I also anticipate that it will be helpful for me to "look back" from time-to-time and will chronicle my efforts with periodic updates.

BACKGROUND

I have been an athlete my entire life.  I've played soccer, basket (collegiate all-star), martial arts/boxing, bicycle racing, running and weightlifting to name a few.  It suddenly dawned on me this weekend that I will not likely be able to do any of these things again....safely anyway.  Except weight (strength) training which I expect to resume.  Golf may be the primary sport that I can do that gives me a chance to compete even if it's just against myself and the course.  That realization was pretty profound.

This is my third year golfing and I can say that I have relatively little natural aptitude for this game but I fell in "love" with it anyway.  Pre-diagnosis, I was routinely playing near bogie golf typically shooting 93-95.  My game was improving and consistent scores in the 80's were "in my sight".

FIRST POST-DIAGNOSIS ROUND OF GOLF (7/15/2012)

My first post-diagnosis round of golf was played today.  I only played 9 holes but it's the first golf I've played in July.  I decided to play a course that's inexpensive and is relatively easy to walk with no big hills to navigate.  The course has a decent layout with some bunkers and lots of water and requires a variety of shots.  The greens are in good shape given the heat, but the fairways and tee boxes are burnt.  I was a little nervous walking to the first tee but fortunately the course was nearly empty. Probably because of somewhat ominous rain clouds overhead.  The first thing I noticed was the usual feeling that the ground was moving under my feet. I've already gotten used to it so most people at a casual glance wouldn't notice anything.  But if anyone looks close, they'll notice that I walk "funny" even though they might not be able to pinpoint it exactly.  My family and friends have reported observing this.

I get to the first tee.  I take a few practice swings and everything feels OK.  Then I swing for real.  I lose my balance a little and I hear what sounds like a gun shot in my head.  Scared the crap out of me. I looked around to see if there was any course maintenance that might have caused the noise...and there was none. It appears that my driver has a "new" sound.  I don't remember it sounding that bad a few days ago when I hit a few at the driving range.  Anyway, the swing was a little handsy and and I hooked the ball left. Playable but in an adjacent fairway.  Not much distance...even for me, probably 200-210 yds but it's on the inside of a dogleg left which helps cut the distance to the green.  I take a 6i to hit over trees and back onto my fairway. As I turn through the shot and my iron hits the hard fairway turf, I "felt" it in my head.  This time it was a really strange rumbling sound like someone dropping debris into a large steel dumpster.  The ground is hard and the contact was a little fat but it was enough to get over and setup for the 3rd shot on a par 5.   Anyway, I chunk (again) my 3rd shot and end up bogeying the hole.  1st hole complete.

I make some nice shots but the round is more of the same.  Chunking irons and hybrids and inconsistent off the tee.  It seems my consistency has decreased somewhat for full-swing shots from the tee and fairway.  My long game has always been my biggest problem, but it seems I've taken a step or two back.  The nice sounds that I associated with solid ball strikes like the "ting" of a titanium driver and the "click" of a cleanly struck iron are now different, hard to describe, and not very pleasant when I impact hard turf.  However, my chipping and putting were OK and not nearly as uncomfortable.  Decent chipping and putting prevented me from racking up a higher score. I end the round on the 9th green with a surprise flash of lightening overhead.  I wonder momentarily if a lightening strike might improve my condition and stop the damn ringing in my ears.  I decide not to test this.

The final score is 51 for a 9-hole par of 36 with a number of penalties for balls into water hazards and one lost ball.  I'm back over a hundred (for 18) but I thought my score was going to be worse before I actually added it up.  At least I'm playing and I think I can adapt.  I really need to focus on a smooth, full-swing tempo and minimize sudden head movements.  Now that I think of it, this was something I really needed to work on before my diagnosis.

NEAR TERM GOAL

I am going to try to hit the driving range this week...every day if possible.  Vacation starts this coming Saturday and I am determined to play at least 5 rounds next week.  There are two very nice courses near our lakeside cottage.  Maybe I'll bring my camera to add photos and break-up my lengthy, wordy posts.

Bye all until my next update.

[DocWu1948]

Good luck to you. Seems like your condition has improved a bit since your first post on BDM. Hope it goes away on its own.

[Topper]

Thank you.  We're waiting to see what (if anything) happens on it's own.

I try to keep a sense of humor.  Golf was hard when the ball was still on the fairway.  Now that the fairway "moves", it going to be an even greater challenge.  Golf was getting too easy anyway.

[Topper]

UPDATE (7/20)

Only made it to the driving range once this week instead of every day.  Work and family stuff in the evenings kept me busy.  The driving range was OK.  Definitely seemed a little rusty with inconsistent contact on my hybrids and irons.

A good friend who I haven't heard from in a while called yesterday and wanted to play a round of golf while he was in town today.  We played a new course (for me) and it was in decent shape.  It's a good length at 6,167 yds from the whites.  A lot of doglegs along with bunkers and a little water.

I was pretty nervous because I didn't really know what to expect.  I have meclizine in my golf bag just in case my vertigo increases.  Anyway, I started with a par and bogey and I'm kinda surprised.  I really fell apart a after that and finished the front 9 in 54 including a 10 on a par 4!  Put one in the water from the fairway (chunked hybrid) and another in the water around the green (skulled chip).  Pretty bad but I'm still having a good time.  I'm just glad to be on the course.

I proclaimed the back 9 was a fresh start.  I hit the ball decent and was able to put together a few good shots in a row and finished the back 9 with an "honest" 44.  I putted out on the greens.  Didn't take relief from a fairway divot when one of our foursome suggested that I could call it ground under repair.  My touch when chipping and with a putter is really off.  I'm not sure if that's because these are really "feel" shots and my condition makes those harder.....or because I simply haven't played in the last few weeks....... or both.

Anyway, I'm still completely deaf in one ear with constant wringing sound in my head and slight balance issues, but I'm at least able to play golf!  Hopefully, I can still make my goal of breaking 90...consistently before the end of the year.

Starting vacation tomorrow and hope to play 5 rounds next week.  Till next time.