Tom Watson made his debut as an honorary starter at the Masters this past April, joining Jack Nicklaus and Gary Player in the beloved Augusta National tradition.
Whether the 73-year-old World Golf Hall of Famer will be in shape to do it again in 2023 is unclear, however, after a recent post from him on Twitter.
According to a report by Golfweek, Watson was hurt on November 14 when the go-kart he was riding on his Kansas farm rolled over. Watson refers in his tweet to having a left shoulder replacement, the surgery performed ON November 18 at Tulane Medical Center in New Orleans by Dr Felix “Buddy” Savoie, chairman of the school’s Department of Orthopaedic Surgery and Rehabilitation.
A bio on the Tulane Orthopedics website lists Savoie as an expert in the areas of shoulder and elbow surgery and sports medicine.
Watson was planning to play in next month’s PNC Championship with his son Michael.
In July, the five-time Open champion and eight-time Major winner participated in the R&A’s Celebration of Champions during the 150th Open at St Andrews. And in January, be played in the Mitsuhishi Electric Championship at Hualalai on the PGA Tour Champions, where he finished 41st in the 42-man field.
While Watson jokingly noted on his Twitter post that go-karts are #foryoungerguys, his favourite hobby in recent years has been horse-cutting, an active endeavour that is essentially separating and tracking a calf from the herd without using the reins.
It was an activity that his wife Hilary, who passed away in 2019 after battling pancreatic cancer, got Watson involved with.
