DECEMBER 2002
• Has surgery to remove fluid inside and outside the anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) and to remove benign cysts. It is from this surgery that Woods learns that the ACL, which connects the lower part of the thigh bone to the upper part of the main bone of the lower leg, is damaged. "There wasn't a whole lot left," he says, adding that he was told by doctors, "'You need to train and develop your hamstring and glute and calf as much as you possibly can to hold it.' Everyone was very surprised it lasted as long as it did before I ruptured it." Woods later wins the 2003 Buick Invitational in his first tournament after the surgery, but after winning seven of 11 major championships ending with the 2002 U.S. Open, he goes winless in the majors in 2003 and 2004.
SUMMER 2007
• Ruptures the ACL. Woods says the final tear occurred when he took a misstep while running on a golf course after the British Open but is able to continue playing. (There is no lasting pain from the ACL beyond the initial injury, and some athletes in golf and other sports have been able to continue to compete without surgery.) Wins five of the final six tournaments he plays that year, including the PGA Championship.
APRIL 2008
• Two days after finishing second in the Masters has arthroscopic surgery to repair cartilage damage but does not have the ACL repaired, hoping to avoid the longer rehabilitation and give himself a chance to play the U.S. Open, British Open and PGA Championship.
A layer of cartilage within the knee joint covers the femur (thigh bone), tibia (shin bone) and patella (kneecap), allowing the bones to glide against each other without damaging the bone. "The natural rotation of the golf swing without the ACL made it a little bit unstable," Woods says, "and it caused some cartilage damage because of that... When they went in there, they discovered some more cartilage damage that they'd have to fix in conjunction with the ACL reconstruction, and it was going to be kind of a double dip there. And I waited to do that."
MAY 2008
• Is advised just weeks before the U.S. Open that because of two stress fractures of the left tibia, he should expect to be on crutches for three weeks and be sidelined for an additional three weeks. The double stress fracture is attributed to Woods' "intense rehabilitation and preparations" for the U.S. Open.
JUNE 2008
• Wins the U.S. Open, going 91 holes, then has surgery eight days later to repair the ACL (using a tendon from his right thigh); additional cartilage damage also is repaired. Doctors say the stress fractures will heal with time off. As for the ACL, "Everyone heals at a different rate," Woods says. "Some people are back to playing sports in six months, some are nine, some are 12. So to be honest with you, no one really knows until we start the rehab process and see how this thing heals."
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