KirkwoodGolf

Monday, June 30, 2008

Sally out to beat Tiger in race
to return from knee operation

Curtis Cup teenager Sally Watson has set herself a goal of playing - if selected, of course - for Scotland in the women's home internationals at Wrexham from September 10 to 12, followed by the Espirito Santo women's world amateur team championship in Australia from October 22 to 25.
In the normal course of events, Sally, picture right by Tom Ward (all rights reserved), who has her 17th birthday on July 10, would be an automatic selection for these tournaments, given that she played well for Great Britain & Ireland in the Curtis Cup match against the United States over the Old Course, St Andrews, at the end of May.
The problem is that Sally, like Tiger Woods, had a major knee operation on her right ACL (Anterior cruciate ligament) on the Wednesday after the Curtis Cup match was over.
The surgeon was Gordon MacKay, former Rangers footballer who does most of the knee operationss on our top athletes. The physiotherapist is Stewart Barton, physio to Scotland rugby team and the British Lions.
"So thanks to the Scottish Institute of Sport, she is getting world class treatment," said her dad, Edinburgh businessman Graham Watson.
"The right ACL was torn in 2003 playing basketball. She was too young to operate on then. She had an op on her right knee to tidy up her cartilage seven weeks before the Curtis Cup, so she did incredibly well - with the help of her medical team - to be ready to play at St Andrews.
"So basically Sally's story mirrors Tiger's, except hers is the right knee, which is probably the easier one for a right-handed golfer.
"Rehab so far is going very well and Sally expects to return to golf stronger and fitter than ever. "She is back putting and her goal is to be ready to play for Scotland in the women's home internationals and world team championships - if selected."
Sally is still a resident student at the David Leadbetter Golf Academy at Bradenton, Florida and she will return there in August to continue her studies and daily training/practice to become an even better golfer.

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