Patient Testimonials

Otis, CONSERVE® Total Hip with BFH® Technology Recipient

Otis knew that an old football injury was the likely cause of a nagging pain in his right hip. Although, the fact that he has spent most of his life walking thousands of miles with a 40-pound set of golf clubs on his right side might have contributed too.

Chris, born and raised in Georgia, has been a professional golf caddy for 40 years. He started his career caddying at the Augusta Country Club when he was 12 years old, earning about $8 a day that he used for lunch money at school. By the time he was out of high school he was caddying full-time and was on track to make a career out of it.

After living with hip pain for about 10 years, it finally got bad enough in 2005 to force Chris to seek medical advice. “Turns out, my hip was worn down to the point of bone rubbing on bone,” Chris, 59, said. “I took a lot of Tylenol, and after every round (of golf) it would stiffen up really badly. I knew I had to do something about it.”

When he did consult with his orthopaedic surgeon, R. Scott Corpe, MD, Chris was told he would have to undergo a complete hip replacement. But, he put it off so he could finish the PGA tour season.

“The Tour season is long and grueling. It lasts for most of the year,” he said. “The golfer I caddy for helped me out toward the end of the season last year because I was having a lot of pain and trouble. He would take his driver on to the tee box, and I would get a head start on down the next fairway, just take a little shortcut. That helped.”

Despite caddying with intense pain, Chris was glad he waited, because this season was extremely successful for him and his pro. They won the Deutsche Bank Championship in Boston on Sept. 5, placed second at the Valero Texas Open in San Antonio on Sept. 25, and ended up finishing in the top 30 money winners to qualify for the PGA Tour Championship in Atlanta.

“I had to keep going even though it hurt,” Chris said. “Those tournaments were big, and winning is almost as exciting for the caddy as it is for the golfer. It was a really big year for us.”

Immediately after the Tour Championship in November, Chris had hip replacement surgery and received a Wright CONSERVE® Total Hip with BFH® (Big Femoral Head) Technology.

Knowing that he had a deadline; the Tour season was to begin again in March; Chris has been working hard on physical therapy and is actually ahead of schedule. At this writing, Chris was attending outpatient physical therapy three times per week, and was walking 8 to 10 miles twice a week.

“Oh, yeah, come first week of March in Miami (the Ford Championship at Doral), everybody is going to be there, including me.”

“It’s feeling pretty good,” he said of the new hip. “A whole lot better than it did last year, and I can tell it’s getting better every day.”

A friend and fellow caddy has been substituting for him during his recovery from surgery, but Chris said he was very anxious to return to the golf course because he felt that the golfer he caddies for was about to have another big season in 2006.

“He’s playing like a young man again. I know I’ve got to be ready, and right now it’s looking really good. I feel strong.”

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