Imagining Dustin Johnson, one of the PGA Tour’s most athletic golfers, tumbling shoeless down the stairs of his rental home “I’ve fallen and I can’t get up-style” is a strange image.
Perhaps it’s a testament to Johnson’s athleticism that he didn’t end up breaking his neck and was at least mobile the day after, arriving at Augusta National to test his ailing back. As we know, he wasn’t able to reach a level of comfort or cobble together a swing that would allow him to compete. DJ withdrew just ahead of his opening-round tee time.
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And while Johnson’s injury isn’t something to make light of, it calls to mind the cornucopia of bizarre accidents that have befallen some of golf’s finest players. Here are some of the strangest injuries from the recent history of this curious game.
DJ and the jet ski
Dustin Johnson is no stranger to freak accidents. And while there is some incredulity toward this story, the official report is that in 2012, DJ hurt his back while lifting a jet ski at his Florida home. He was forced to pull out of the Masters that year as well. (Photo source/Wikimedia)
Brandt Jobe and the killer broom
Brandt Jobe was sweeping his garage in 2006. Somehow, the broom he was using shattered and he...wait for it...severed two fingertips. Jopes collected the severed portions of his anatomy, placed them in ice and they were surgically reattached. (Photo source/PGATour.com)
Greg Norman’s chainsaw disaster
Who can forget Greg Norman nearly severing his hand with a chainsaw while doing some landscaping at his Florida property? (Photo source/Wikimedia)
Nick Faldo vs. a deer
Nick Faldo was taking his shirt off and apparently tried to fling it over his head when his hand struck something behind him. It was a deer head mounted on the wall, and Faldo impaled his middle finger on the antler. (Photo source/Wikimedia)
Monty goes down
Colin Montgomerie, who certainly has never looked like an athletic man, proved this suspicion correct when he tripped and injured himself ahead of the 2003 Open Championship. Monty was forced to withdraw. (Photo source/Wikimedia)
Mickelson’s mishap on the slopes
Back when he was a young Figjam, Phil Mickelson collided with a tree while skiing. The resulting shattered left thing compromised his 1994 season, and he still has a rod in his leg. (Photo source/Wikimedia)
Ernie Els…twice
Ernie Els has had a couple of bizarre injuries. He badly sprained his ankle playing tennis against one of his children (was the Big Easy competing hard?). He also tore knee ligaments while tubing behind a speedboat in 2005. (Photo source/Wikimedia)
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Rory’s last kickabout
Kicking a soccer ball around with friends ahead of the 2015 British Open, Rory McIlroy somehow managed to rupture his ankle. (Photo source/Wikimedia)
Leave it to professional golfers to get hurt in the most bizarre ways. No one will ever forget Rory McIlroy rupturing his ankle before the 2015 British Open and no one will forget Dustin Johnson slipping down a flight of stairs ahead of the 2017 Masters.
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