Every freakin' report on Tiger Woods, I mean, every single one, has something to this effect:

"Nine months removed from major knee surgery ..."

I don't know about you guys, but I'm sick of hearing this. I could put up with it if the reports included "Nine months removed from major BRAIN surgery ..." but I'm ready to shoot my TV with my .45 every time a report about THE GREAT GOD TIGER comes on.

I honestly enjoy the occasional report on Tiger and how he's doing (because the guy is GOLF, after all), but the media makes me want to puke my socks up!

And, no, this is not a "Tiger basher" thread, before any lowbrow jumps to disjointed conclusions. It's an honest whine about the stupid media. Ninety percent of them are just hack slobs without an original thought to write about.

Normally I agree with topics like this. Ever had a sick day from work and see sportscenters top 10 plays from last night...700 times? However, I think this time it's simply people getting jaded about hearing about Tiger and his tremendous feats. A surgery similar to what he had kept Ernie from getting back to form for something like 2 years,in his own words- if you think he's even back in form now. I think people underrate the fact that Immelman won the masters coming off spinal surgery something like a year before (forgive me if I have my facts wrong).

My dad, whom I love, had the middle lobe of his right lung removed once (he has never smoked, by the way), and it took him a while to recover from that because he got shingles shortly thereafter. But later he had triple-bypass open-heart surgery. And less than two months after that one, he was mowing a big yard with an ancient, non-drive assisted push mower. My dad's operations resulted in him looking like he's been "cracked" by Dr. Frankenstein -- drunk.

That impresses me a hell of a lot more than a billionaire's major knee surgery by the absolute best surgery team money can buy.

Props to your dad. But just because your dad is an amazing man it doesn't diminish Tiger's accomplishments one bit- and to be fair, golf requires more precision than just physical exertion, which I think is the impressive part- Tiger didn't win bombing it 350, he won it carving shots into par 3s and scoring on and around the green (no offense to your dad, but to bring it back to the topic).

My post was exactly "on topic." This is a complaint about the media. Read the starter post, and think about it.

yes, sick of hearing it.
But they really have nothing else to talk about, so if I were a producer, I will milk this thing into the player's.

I think it's stupid to let it bother you, really. It's the nature of the media and being mad at it isn't going to make it change.

Ever had ACL surgery? After my first, Had both knees done, the doc said you'll feel normal in a about a year, I thought yea right, a year?? I'll recover way faster. A year later I was thinking when is my knee ever going to feel normal again. The next go around I didn't even worry about having a "normal' joint for a year. yeah, it takes that long. That is why NFL guys tear an ACL and maybe make it back for training camp the next year.

Not sure where to go with this one here. I think it's the media trying to help people understand just how crazy Tiger's progress is. A normal recovery time for a major ACL reconstruction is anywhere from 1 year to 1 1/2 yrs. Granted, he's a professional athlete, but nine months is pretty astounding. But I do agree with you that they don't necessarily need to lead each story w/ the obligatory "nine months removed from surgery..."

+1. You beat me to it Par Fore.

I had one of my ACLs reconstructed last June. I was back running 5 miles a day by August 1. I was doing my PT excercises just about every free moment I had so that I could heal up faster and I guess it worked.

Wait until you hear "Tiger, now 9 years removed for major surgery" and it will happen! Tiger is just amazing!, the media, not so amazing!

If people keep asking about it, what's he supposed to say?

THANK YOU!!!

That's spot on IMO. The media flat out STINKS, especially Golf Channel, when it comes to covering golf and Tiger. It's downright painful.

I heard one announcer mention something about Tiger being a father of two, etc. Really? Is he the ONLY player with kids?

Painful, just painful. Thank God for a mute button.

Kevin

I was shocked last week that before the final round (I think it was) at BH the "Tiger" story was on the last page of the sports section.

Trevor Immelman had a benign calcified fibrotic tumor removed from his diaphram....not spinal surgery. Just to set the record straight.

But I get your point and agree! Tiger gets old. I'd love to see more reels of the regular joes.

Dr. B

Look the long and short is Tiger got back to form and Won very shortly after coming back to the game, golf is such a mental game and he proved he has a great mental game having confidence to break through the mental block of not using that knee the proper way. The reality is, if Tiger wins the Masters after winning the Arnold Palmer so soon after a "major" operation like this it will remove all doubt that he is indeed the best golf of all time. I'm not a Tiger tire pumper, I was cheering every good shot O Hair made last week, but the man is amazing and that cannot be denied, the media just replay the same things over and over so yes it can get old after hearing the same thing a million times but it doesn't make it any less amazing IMO.

The media is just pushing their money man. He is the most popular player to come along in golf for a long time. He also attracts some kids who normally wouldn't play. Also, in the US everyone loves a winner. With that combination, they will be talking nonstop about him for the forseeable future.

Let's not forget that Ernie Els has attributed some of his less-than-stellar play to a knee surgery he had a couple of years ago. (And yes, I know he has an autistic son, too. I appreciate the difficulties there.) Also, Vijay Singh has had some publicized efforts at a fast recovery from his recent knee surgery (arthroscopic, I believe, not a full allograph ACL replacement) derailed by attepts to come back too quickly. (Perhaps more competion with Tiger? Maybe, but IMO, he tried to get back too quickly.) Both of those events make the comparison with Tiger's recovery reasonable.

The other posters' experiences and hearsay about allograph ACL replacement typically taking 1-1 1/2 years to fully heal is correct, in my experience and observation of other such patients over the 3 years I was treated at a PT facility for my knee dislocation. My other knee required arthroscopic surgery for a partial ACL tear and meniscus trim, and the recovery time was much shorter and far less painful. YMMV. IMO, Tiger's recovery is very, very fast. I felt fearful for him when he hit that bunker shot with his knee torqued at Bay Hill last Sunday. No evidence of any pain on his face during or after the shot, and he bounded up out of that bunker with no help from Steve Williams. His surgical and PT team apparently did a helluva job.

The Golf Channel should permanently put a calendar on the screen - 'Tigers rehab - Day 202' etc, and have a show each day where an orthopedic surgeon gives a 30 minute rundown, with X rays and MRI images on what he can expect on day 202, 203 etc etc.

I'm sure TGC considered that, but even they found that too irritating!

Edit: Or, more likely, they told Tiger they planned to do that, and he told them to pi$$ off.

That's hilarious! I just hope the powers that be at Golf Channel don't read this and get some crazy idea to actually do it.

Or better yet, maybe they can get rid of Michael Breed and have a show called "The Knee Fix" hosted by Tiger's surgeon.

Kevin

After his win at Arnies last weekend, the announcers were so free with gushing adulation, I felt that they needed a shower. Honestly, his return has revealed just how warped these announcers are. In one sense, I think they don't respect the tour generally, and only want Number 1 on all the time. In another, I think they feel that if they pile on the band wagon, they'll get some face time with their lover.

Its really gotten quite sick. -ooh look at his shirt, his bicepts, his hemline, I hear he presses 900 pounds do you think he'll take me to prom.

Reminds me of Madden when he used to call a game for the Cowboys led by Aiken, or Montana with the 49ers, there was sooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo much a*s kissing, it was like there was no one else on the field. I've always wondered if their agents are involved in things like that, you know payolla?

TGC's two main Tiger factors:
A) Greatest. Player. Ever.
B) Greatest. Meal Ticket. Ever.

Maybe 20 years ago recovery was 1 to 1.5 years, nowadays 6 to 9 months is the norm. With an aggressive physical therapy program
the sky is the limit for recovery. Tiger was actually ready to play atleast a month earlier.

maybe he wasn't, but it looked to me like on a few of his drives at Bay Hill he was still popping his knee out. if he keeps that up he'll be back under the knife & we'll have to hear it all over again.

Tiger won with a severe injury, and then in a remarkably short period of time returned to win again post surgery.
The "stupidity" comes from people who don't appreciate this monumental achievement.

Yeah, we get it - he is God. Kinda mixed with Lazarus.

It is the monumental overkill of the fawning TV coverage (which has always been fawning) that irritates some, including me. There was golf before Tiger, and there will be golf after, although with a lot more Nike around, sadly.

In fact, many footballers (the real kind, who play soccer) come back from knee surgery in a similar interval. Footballers use their knees quite a lot too, with that running, kicking, tackling stuff.

In contrast though, when they get a dodgy knee in the first place, they don't risk damaging it further. Cause that would really be stupid, no?

Yes, I am sick of hearing it, yes I understand why the meida is relentlessly promoting it, they feel it will boost their ratings. This isn't quite as painful as the Denver Broncos vs. Jay Cutler saga which is on SC ad naseum every day for the last 3 weeks, but similar to the Brett Favre saga 12 months ago, at least Tiger and Brett have acomplished something in thier careers.

I guess the real question is when will the media finally figure out that now even 93 year old grandmothers in Botswana know that the great Tiger Woods had ACL surgery last year. When this happens I am qutie sure they will feel satisfied that they have done their job and informed the entire world of the majesty of the accomplishment. I am confident this will occur sometime before next Christmas.

Just make sure you are fully mentally prepared for the lead-up to the US Open at Bethpage, can you imagine all that has occured since then? Tiger has switched drivers, switched, balls, swing guru's, sergio got rid of the driver yips, found out how to putt, the fans in NY still love Phil, the big dual between the 3 of them the last time at Bethpage, and yes Tiger had knee surgery 12 months ago.....imagine the possibilities.......can't wait for the 3 DVD set ........I am hoping for a device you can strap to your leg that shoots pain through your knee so you can have the ability to feel the same pain Tiger felt. This will be the biggest marketing blitz in the history of golf, what if Tiger misses the cut, there will be a lot of wasted pre-recorded footage they won't be able to play, they might actually have to talk about actual play on the course.

Once it's torn, you can't damage it further.

You guys who are tired of hearing this really need to turn off the television once in a while. It gets repeated, because lots of people don't hear it the first ten times it's mentioned because they are actually out living their lives.

In addition, what Tiger has accomplished is amazing... sure, lots of people have the surgery, and a few recover more quickly, but how many of you are out beating the best players in the world just nine months removed from reconstructive knee surgery?

Yeah, that's why it's amazing.

What, you can't damage the knee further? Maybe you can't damage the ligament further, but he didn't get stress fractures of a ligament.

Yes tired of it as well, even when he was off there was more coverage on him then the tourament. Had total hip replacement the day his Father died. Was back playing me usual golf in 4 months, altough riding a cart for the rest of the year. Had fantastic therapist that got me back in shape plus. Just waiting for the weather to break, to get swinging a club again .
Marty

The stress fractures weren't in the knee and they were from over training and had nothing to do with the ACL damage.

real football>>

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E2rSjSPbUa4

Yawn.

Football needs to have the foot meeting the ball occasionally. Hence the name. That game should be called Steroidfreakrunningball.

If you want to see big sweaty men slamming into each other (and I really don't know whether you like that sort of thing or not, but its a free world), try rugby. Those guys don't wear big protective suits. All they have is a cup to protect their Pro V1s.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xvMFHXcd0yQ

Yup, none of those pansies in the NFL could handle rugby....

We are agreed then.

Nice. Insane game, rugby.

The lack of big protective suits results in inhibition which mutes the collisions but some of those guys could probably survive on Sunday on an American Steroidfreakrunningball team.

Just so this isn't a complete threadjack, I would say that Tiger's victory created silly drunken euphoria in the media when they
saw the ratings and realized that they might be able to keep their jobs. I don't think that this will change unless Tiger
stops performing the type of magic on the course that keeps the public on the edge of their seats and gives them so much
to enjoy.

[quote name='mjtoal' date='Apr 5 2009, 01:32 PM' post='16063


We are agreed then.
[/quote]

Now you're just being silly. Or a bit on the foggy side of things. Either way, you're fooling yourself if you think there is any truth to that...

Guess we're a bit off topic here...

Just replying to sarcasm with sarcasm.( )

The NFL players are better protected, especially for eye gouges and the like.