(Ponte Vedra Beach, FL) — Peter Jacobsen notified the Champions Tour today that he will have surgery this Saturday in Naples to replace his left hip. Jacobsen does not expect to compete in any more official events this year, but hopes to return to competition in November.
The two-time Champions Tour major winner has played remarkably well despite the pain and discomfort the hip condition has caused him this year. In 12 starts he has posted one runner-up, one third-place and six top-10 finishes. He is 12th in the Charles Schwab Cup race and 17th on the official money list with $685,844 (17th).
The following is a transcript of a conversation the Champions Tour had with Peter earlier today about his surgery and his plans for rehabilitation.
PETER JACOBSEN TRANSCRIPT — Tuesday, September 5, 2006
"I’m having surgery on Saturday here in Naples with Dr. Mort Bertram, a very experienced doctor who has worked on a lot of athletes, notably Johnny Bench. He’s one of the best in the country. I had a very disappointing x-ray last Friday. Dr. Bertram was surprised at how much my left hip joint had deteriorated since the U.S. Senior Open. I’d had another x-ray done just before the Senior Open. I was really hobbled at the Senior British and then had to withdraw from Seattle, the JELD-WEN Tradition and then the Wal-Mart First Tee event last week. I’d taken a month off prior to that.
"I’ve got bone spurs and lots of problems in my left hip — bone-on-bone. The doctor said it’s time to come out. I’m starting to experience other problems with my back, my neck, so as anyone who has had hip replacement surgery knows, you know when the time to do it is and it’s now for me. You start to develop other complications.
"I’m told I should be out for six to seven weeks. When I come back I should be as good as new. Dr. Bertram said I could be swinging a club in four to five weeks. Depending on the person, I could be playing 18 holes of golf in six weeks, it could be seven, it could be eight. I don’t anticipate playing any more tournaments the rest of the year. The ADT Skills Challenge is one I’m shooting for in November. I’m the defending champion. I want to play in that. There’s an outside chance I could play in the Charles Schwab Cup Championship in Sonoma. It’s seven weeks away, but that’s highly unlikely. I haven’t withdrawn from it.
"I’ve been seeing Dr. Bertram for about a year. My hip’s been bugging me off and on since 2000 when I had my first arthroscopic surgery (in Vail). I’ve had two surgeries on my left hip and it’s now time for it to come out.
"I’ve talked with Bench, Jack Nicklaus, Doug Collins, George Peper, Marlene Hagge, and numerous friends of mine. I’m real confident in my doctor and real confident in the outcome. I really believe this is the right thing for me..first for quality of life and second for my golf game. I’m expecting to return better than before and to get back out on Tour and to get back to competing.
"This was no surprise. It was simply a matter of time. I talked to Dr. Bertram about a year-and-a-half ago and asked him when do you think I should have this done? He had a three-word answer..’you will know’. I didn’t know what he meant and it frustrated me but now I do understand what that means.
"The procedure is similar to what Jack Nicklaus, Johnny Bench and Doug Collins had done. Most hip replacements are fairly similar. It’s just a matter of which joint you’re having put in. I’m getting a Stryker hip, the newest and the latest development. The doctor told me I should be walking the day of my surgery, so I’ll be in the hospital over the weekend. Probably gooned up on some medicine, but I’ll be watching the Ohio State/Texas game and my Oregon Ducks play Fresno State. I sure hope the hospital gets ESPN and ESPN 2.
"I know there will be a lot of pool work as there was before, a lot of swimming and running in the water with the weight belt as I did before. I did this type of rehab before. I’m very excited about doing it.
"I’m going to be here in Florida until the middle of October then go to the west coast where I’ve got some things to do. In the meantime, I’ll be working on my hip, working on my rehab, slowly starting to practice when I can, and working on my game and my strength.
"I’m also looking forward to a year without a scalpel. I like to use 14 clubs and I don’t want one of them to be a scalpel. I was operated on once in ’04, twice in ’05, now in ’06. I’m looking forward to an uneventful year ahead except for on the golf course. My goal is to come back and be competing with the best players on the Champions Tour, giving it my best shot."
Contact:
Jeff Adams
Director of Public Relations, Champions Tour
Tel: 904-273-3397 Fax: 904-273-3582
Email: jadams@pgatourhq.com
