COMMENTARY | KAPALUA, Hawaii — When I think about golf I rarely think about injures. Sure, longtime players develop knee, hip, and other injuries due to overuse, but having someone unexpectedly pull out of a tournament for an injury really isn’t commonplace. It’s even more uncommon to have someone pull out for an injury unrelated to golf. However, that is exactly what happened at the start of the 2012 PGA Tour.
The 2012 PGA Tour season is now under way. The “Hyundai Tournament of Champions” kicked off on Friday, Jan. 6 in Kapalua, Maui, Hawaii. There were to be 28 golfers in this tournament; however, with one of the players getting injured the field had been cut to just 27 — the smallest group to play in this tournament since 1999.
Lucas Glover was forced to pull out of the tournament due to an injury before he even teed off. Glover, a former U.S. Open champion, suffered a knee injury while paddle boarding in the Pacific ocean. Glover told ESPN what happened to cause his injury.
“My foot caught on the edge of the board, my body went one way and my knee went the other,” Glover said. “I knew immediately I done a little something. I just wasn’t sure how bad.”
It is unclear when Glover will be able to return to the game. Fans hope to see him return quickly.
Glover isn’t the first player to have to pull out of a tournament due to an injury that occurred in the ocean. In 2011, Geoff Ogilvy had to sit out because he cut his index finger on coral while in the ocean.
With Glover on the sidelines, and 12 new faces playing in the Hyundai Tournament of Champions, the outcome of this tournament could be shocking. I have to wonder if this is a great chance for the newcomers like Keegan Bradley, Jhonattan Vegas, Scott Stallings, and Brendan Steele to make a name for themselves. Having a newcomer claim the win in the opening-tournament would be a great way to kick off the season. Golf fans could use some new talent to fall in love with.