There is Golfer's Elbow Too

The formal name for golfer's elbow is medial epicondylitis. It is a lot like tennis elbow but the inflammation occurs on the inside, rather than the outside of your elbow where the tendons of your forearm muscles are attached. The pain may also exhibit down your forearm and into your wrist. One easily recognizable symptom of golfer's elbow is that the pain intensifies when you flex your wrist toward your forearm. Another common symptom is numbness or tingling that radiates down your forearm into your fingers, usually the ring finger and the little finger.

Golfer's elbow is not necessarily caused by playing golf although gripping or swinging your clubs incorrectly can overstress the tendons and muscles. The pain can begin any time a sudden impact is applied to your elbow or wrist, or it can be the result of repetitive lower-level stress to the wrist, fingers or elbow. It seems to be most common in men between the ages of 20 to 49 but that seems to be more of a coincidence as there is no known gender relationship or age relationship.

If you think that you experience golfer's elbow you should seek medical attention. Leaving it untreated, especially if you continue to play golf regularly, can lead to persistent stiffness and elbow pain and a feeling of weakness in your hand and wrist.

Self care treatment recommended by the Mayo Clinic is to rest your elbow by putting your golf schedule on hold until the pain goes away or until you get a medical OK from your physician. Ice is often helpful to reduce inflammation. Apply ice packs three or four times a day for 20 minutes at a time. Stretching exercises may be helpful too but you should probably receive specific instructions on which exercises and how much exercise from a physician or therapist. Over-the-counter pain medications can be useful too so long as you do not have any other issues with them.

If you do not currently experience golfer's elbow or if you did and have gotten over it there are a few things you can do to help prevent its occurrence in the future. Strengthen your forearm muscles by squeezing a tennis ball or doing repetitive curls with a light weight. Warm up before playing golf by walking briskly or jogging for a few minutes, even back and forth from the practice putting green, and do some gentle stretching before you get on the first tee.

If you feel prone to golfer's elbow maybe your golf swing mechanics are out of whack. The golf swing is a holistic, whole body movement from your feet to your head. Sometimes a small injury somewhere else on your body, or an idiosyncratic hitch to your swing will put extra stress on your wrist and elbow causing the pain.

Bobby Jones said that the secret to his perfect swing was "I keep it simple. I don't fight gravity".