Tiger might want to take it easy on the fist pump

April 23rd, 2008 | Posted by PostmanR

When you’re Tiger Woods, you have plenty of reasons to pump the fist. Money, a beautiful wife, a child, oh, and complete and utter domination of the PGA Tour. When you’re someone like me, you pump your fist when you hear some sweet techno beats. (UNTZ UNTZ UNTZ.) But alas, if Bill Gramatica has taught us anything, it’s that within celebration, one can really injure oneself.

And with Tiger’s recent hush-hush knee surgery, some are speculating a fist pump at last year’s PGA Championship might have lead to the injury.

When his left knee buckled at last year’s PGA Championship, Tiger Woods wouldn’t admit he hurt himself. It was a little embarrassing considering the limp developed after his fist-pump celebration of a birdie on the eighth hole at Southern Hills.

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Others, including PGA Tour commissioner Tim Finchem, knew Tiger was in pain. Instructor Hank Haney acknowledged that Woods was having a lot of trouble, but added, “He doesn’t like to talk about stuff like that. He doesn’t want to use excuses, you know?” Charles Howell III, who sees Woods on the range at Isleworth, also was aware Tiger had been favoring his left knee. “I knew he was playing through a bit of pain, but he’s tough,” said Howell. “He’s not going to let it get in the way of him playing and trying to win the Masters.”

If this is to be believed — and I would like to believe it — it only further fits into Tiger Woods World Class Golfer. The course, the clubs, his swing does not slow him down. No, no. His celebration is the only thing stopping him. His dorky, awkward fist pump. Awesome.