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On the Road: Fun at the FootJoy Shoot

On the Road: Fun at the FootJoy Shoot

Fun at the FootJoy TV shoot and good news from the doctors, in this edition of On The Road with Ernie

Sorry for the delay posting this latest website update, but it's been a pretty full-on week. As I was saying last week, I flew out to the States again at the weekend to shoot a television commercial for my sponsor FootJoy. I'd shot one for Titleist the previous week, you'll remember. Anyway, this latest shoot was a lot of fun. The 'sign boy', a guy called Matt, was involved in all of them and he was in top form. He's such a funny character. He makes the whole thing great fun, which is a real bonus because they take longer to shoot than you'd imagine - a whole day for a just a two-minute commercial. So it went well and I must admit I'm really looking forward to seeing these latest ads on television.
 
Since I got back on Thursday I've had a busy couple of days; a few meetings at the office and also a check-up with the surgeon who performed my knee operation, Andrew Unwin. As you all know, I've been hitting balls and playing a bit of golf this past two or three weeks, and I've had a little bit of pain and swelling around the knee. I wanted to get that checked out and the good news is; there's absolutely no reason why I shouldn't carry on playing as normal. Andrew said that what I'm experiencing is completely natural. Apparently I can expect a certain amount of discomfort from time to time for the next 6-8 months. But the important thing is, playing golf and practising will not damage the knee in any way. The knee is strong. The pain and swelling is simply all part of the rehab process. You just have to work your way through it.
 
As you can imagine, it was a big relief to have the all-clear on that front. It means that everything is looking very positive for the Nedbank Challenge in three week's time. I also saw Sophie this week for a couple of physio sessions and Josh is still putting me through my paces in the gym here at Wentworth. My all-round fitness has come on a lot this past eight weeks or so. I feel strong and my cardio is good.
 
Actually, I'll probably bring Josh out to South Africa the week before the Nedbank starts, so I can prepare 100 per cent for getting back into the swing of tournament golf. As Josh says, up until now we've been in the 'power up' phase where I work hard on developing a really good base of total fitness to give me the most power, energy and resistance to future injury and illness. Towards the end of this month we progress onto what he calls the 'taper down' phase, where we change the conditioning by targeting exercises which are specific to my golf swing.
 
The one extra thing I need to watch between now and then is my diet. I have to make sure I keep eating the right things - and not too much, either. That's difficult for me. I mean, I do like my food, especially a good steak. But no, don't even tempt me, I've got to be strong!
 

Coming up this week...
 
With the weather turning nasty and wintry here in London, I'm pleased to say that I'm off to Dubai for the weekend. It's only a flying visit with some guys from Credit Suisse, but we're going to squeeze in a game at The Emirates, one of my favourite golf courses, and also Dubai Creek. As many of you will know, I'm a big fan of Dubai and this is a lovely time of the year to go. It should be a good couple of days.
 
That's it for now, though; I've got to go. But I'll be sure to write again when I get back from Dubai and fill you in on all the latest news.
 
Bye.

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