While Gary Woodland will certainly be trying to win the 2024 Masters tournament this week, he’ll just be enjoying the walk more than anything.
That’s because Woodland gained a new outlook on life after needing to undergo a significant surgery to remove a brain tumor last September. The professional golfer was struggling with fear and anxiety, and was violently getting woken up in the dead of the night by his mind, which was convincing him he was dying.
After his condition worsened, doctors eventually suggested that he get an MRI to get to the bottom of what was going wrong with his brain. That’s when the imaging revealed that Woodland had a lesion, and it just so happened to be on the part of his brain that controlled anxiety and fear.
Woodland was forced to put his golf career, and his life, on hold as he prioritized his health. He wanted to make sure he would be around to help his wife raise their three kids, and though the brain surgery Woodland needed in order to remove the lesion was dangerous, he had no choice but to go through with it.
On September 18th, 2023, the 39-year-old went through successful surgery, and he started on the long road of recovery. Doctors ordered him to not touch a club for at least six weeks after his operation, but Woodland barely made it two weeks before he started lightly practicing again.
Fast forward to today, just over 6 months removed from his surgery, and Gary Woodland was back on the course and competing in the Masters Par Three tournament. He wasn’t taking things too seriously as he focused on enjoying the time back on the golf course, especially since he was able to share the time with his wife and three kids.
And you could not have scripted the day any better if you tried, because as Gary worked his way around the 9-hole par three course, he hit a rare hole-in-one on the 6th hole. The moment could not have been more perfect, and Woodland was able to celebrate the moment with his playing partners and his family.
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Sports are the best.
Gary Woodland’s story is as inspirational as it gets, and it would be amazing to see him continue to have success into the actual Masters tournament.
I’m sure he’d love to play well too, but at the end of the day, Woodland is just happy to still be able to play the game he loves.
