It has been revealed that the “training injury” German golfer Bernhard Langer suffered in January actually occurred during a pickleball game.
“I Heard This ‘Pop,’ Like A Gunshot”
The PGA quoted him at the time as saying, “Yesterday, during training exercises in Boca Raton, I tore my Achilles tendon. I will have surgery today to repair the injury, which will cause me to miss time playing competitive golf as I recover.
However, Langer, now 66, told the “Musings on Golf” podcast this week that he tore his Achilles’ tendon playing pickleball and not in the “training exercise” he claimed last month. The injury will keep him out of the Masters for only the second time in the previous 40 years.
“I play all sorts of sports to stay fit, and this was part of my fitness regime,” Langer said. “I was playing pickleball, and somebody was trying to lob me. I did a few steps backward and hit an overhead, and as I landed on the ground with my feet, I heard this huge ‘pop,’ very loud, like a gunshot. I knew right away it was a torn Achilles.”
“I Don’t Want To Make A Fool Of Myself”
Langer revealed he underwent surgery the following day and remains optimistic about his comeback to the PGA Champions Tour. This circuit is tailored for golfers aged 50 and above and is tentatively scheduled to begin in early May.
The Washington Post had reported that two-time Masters champion Bernhard Langer announced in January that he would play Augusta National one last time at this year’s tournament, saying: “I don’t want to make a fool of myself” competing against younger players.
“Throughout my career, faith and family have been my bedrocks, providing me strength and guiding me through difficult times. I will lean on both as I work towards a return to competition.”
He had secured his spot in this year’s U.S. Open after his triumph at the previous year’s U.S. Senior Open, which marked his 12th major victory on the Champions Tour. The German had hinted that this would be his final U.S. Open appearance unless unforeseen circumstances intervened.
A Substantial Spike In Pickleball Injuries
The question remains whether Langer will pursue his participation in the 2025 Masters, considering former champions receive lifelong invitations. Nonetheless, he did confirm his attendance at this year’s champions’ dinner at Augusta National.
Recent reports from the American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons have highlighted a substantial spike in pickleball injuries. Analysis of a comprehensive government injury database reveals they have increased by a staggering 200 percent over the past two decades.
However, the actual escalation might be significantly greater, given that the database only accounted for fractures and overlooked any soft-tissue injuries and ligament/tendon tears incurred during gameplay.
“While pickleball is a great sport, nothing is without risk,” Yasmine Ghattas, a medical student at the University of Central Florida who led the AAOS database study, said last month.
A Nasty Bruise
As if to emphasize the recent injury reports, Eugenie Bouchard, an ex-tennista turned pickleballer, posted a photo on her Instagram account showing a nasty bruise she’d suffered while practicing at Coconut Creek in Florida.
She commented, “Pickle injuries” underneath the photo. She’s not the only one to have fallen foul of the dangerous side of the sport recently. We reported how Michelle Pfeiffer was sporting a peach of a shiner after receiving a ball in the eye in December.
Another of our articles revealed that Andrew G. Lee, MD, from Baylor College of Medicine and Houston Methodist Hospital, along with colleagues, had highlighted the ocular risks associated with pickleball, particularly for individuals over 65 years old, who are “particularly vulnerable to eye injuries.”
