A team of four friendly faces are at the forefront of ensuring golfers’ muscles are taken care of at the Joburg Open this week at the Houghton Golf Club. Behind the scenes at the tournament, which teed off on Thursday and concludes on Sunday, 8 March, physiotherapists Karishma Dahya, Nicolene Breed, Yvonne Rautenbach and Chantelle Hefer are working quietly to keep players at their best for the tournament.
While spectators follow the action on the fairways, the physio room has its own steady rhythm. Golfers walk in between rounds or practice sessions, often with a tight shoulder, a sore back or a movement that doesn’t feel right.
“It’s amazing working with the athletes,” says Rautenbach. “They know their bodies so well. When they come in here, they can tell us exactly where they feel restricted in a movement or what is happening,” she explains.
From there, the work begins. Through treatment, stretching and hands-on therapy, the physio team work to release tension and restore movement so that players can return to the course.
“You can almost see the instant impact it has. They move better straight away. For us physios that’s very satisfying. They are always grateful and appreciative,” Rautenbach adds.
For Dahya, the most rewarding moments come when a player arrives unsure if they will be able to control the injury or pain. “It’s amazing to see when golfers come in with an injury and then go back out to play,” she says. “Knowing that we were able to help them get back onto the course.”
Breed echoes the sentiment and adds that the goal is always simple, “to help the players perform at their best”.
But somewhere between treatments and tournament rounds, another part of the experience develops. Over the course of the week, a camaraderie forms between the physios and the players.
“You build up such a relationship,” one of them says. “You’re rooting for all of them to win,” says Breed.
It is also part of what makes working at the Joburg Open so special for the team. The environment, they say, is professional and well organised, and it is rewarding to see the direct impact their work can have on a player’s performance.
Seeing a golfer walk out of the treatment room moving more freely, then later stepping onto the course to compete, gives the physios a quiet sense that they have played a small role in the moment.
Their work may happen away from crowds and cameras. But every smooth swing carries the mark of the helping hands working behind the scenes.
Written by Brümilda Swartbooi