Jeff Overton’s Official World Golf Rankings profile has been inactive for thus lengthy that it comprises a obvious error:
WORLD NUMBER -2147483648
Clearly, Overton is not rated negatively; he really he’s not categorised. The 39-year-old former Ryder Cupper hasn’t had a world rating begin since February 2017 when he missed the reduce on the Honda Traditional. After that begin, he underwent again surgical procedure, which led to the scariest second of his profession, a spinal an infection that jeopardized not solely his life however his future within the recreation. Golf.
Greater than 5 years later, nevertheless, Overton overcame the percentages and returned to the PGA Tour. He’ll return at this week’s 3M Open with a sponsor waiver.
“It’s extremely emotional. It has been a particularly tough journey the final 5 and a half years,” Overton advised Golf Channel’s Kira Ok. Dixon on Wednesday from TPC Twin Cities.
Overton, a gifted fan from Evansville, Indiana, who performed on the USA Walker Cup staff!”). That season, Overton achieved 5 top-3 finishes, together with three runner-up shows, and cracked the highest 50 on this planet rankings for the primary time.
However Overton has but to interrupt via for that elusive first Tour title. Whereas coping with an ailing again, Overton misplaced his card after the 2016 season. The subsequent spring he opted for surgical procedure to restore a herniated disc, a minimally invasive process that led to a life-threatening spinal an infection and emergency surgical procedure.
“After a month within the hospital and an acute rehab facility, many nights of excruciating ache and uncertainty, two months of intravenous antibiotics and residential well being care, we’re lastly seeing the sunshine on the finish of the tunnel,” Overton’s spouse wrote. , Christina, after the ordeal in Might 2017.
Added Overton: “It received into my vertebrae and triggered a whole lot of havoc.”
Overton mentioned he did not contact a golf membership for greater than two years after he was launched from the hospital, and it wasn’t till about six months in the past that he began swinging his driver. From there, he slowly regained his recreation and stamina.
“About six or eight weeks in the past I used to be capable of stroll 72 holes at Valhalla and I believed once I received fairly near par for 4 days on a extremely good golf course, I believed, you already know what? attempt to play some golf this yr,” mentioned Overton, who a couple of weeks in the past performed a qualifier Monday for the John Deere Traditional.
Overton returns to the PGA after spinal surgical procedure
Overton’s return to the world rankings was supposed to come back on the Korn Ferry Tour’s Value Cutter Charity Championship, additionally going down this week in Springfield, Missouri. However these plans modified final Sunday when Overton and his household, who has two younger daughters, have been about to board a flight from Florida to Missouri.
His cellphone rang, and on the opposite line was Hollis Cavner, the 3M match director, who wished to increase Overton a waiver. Cavner had heard that Overton had been working exhausting on his recreation and figured why not give the veteran with 30+ prime 10s worldwide and 200+ cuts an opportunity to show himself once more on the highest degree? .
“I am joyful to assist a man,” Cavner advised the star tribune. “We all the time like to succeed in out to younger individuals and assist them. To have a man who’s been so good on the tour who had an damage, it could be nice to see him come again. He will not be lightning in a bottle as a result of he hasn’t had a scorecard and pencil in his hand in a very long time, however I hope he can begin enjoying nicely once more.”
Listening to the information, Overton unloaded her baggage from the carousel, rebooked her flight, and arrived in Minneapolis at 2 a.m. Monday.
Now, he is prepared for his long-awaited return to the PGA Tour.
“It is exhausting to explain precisely each time you’ve got been in a lot ache and each time you have not actually been capable of do what you are feeling such as you wish to do,” Overton mentioned, “however you already know, I am again right here to do what I wish to do.”