Howard Johnson, at 78, has found more distance … and more joy.
Howard Johnson likes to joke that his golf career didn’t exactly begin with great promise.
“I couldn’t make the high school golf team,” he said.
Johnson though didn’t seriously take up the game until he was 35. But once he did, it became an important part of his life. His daughter eventually played collegiately at the University of Missouri, his son became an accomplished player and Johnson became a longtime member at Omaha Country Club.
Now 78, he’s playing some of his best golf.
Getting there, however, required something of a comeback.
A few years ago, Johnson suffered a significant tear of the gluteus medius in his left hip that required surgery. For the first 60 days afterward, he couldn’t put weight on his left leg. Even after extensive rehabilitation, Johnson said the hip remained weak and his body lacked the symmetry he once had.
His golf swing suffered.
Enter Bruce Smith, the director of instruction at Omaha Country Club, who quickly noticed Johnson’s limited mobility and introduced him to the GolfForever Swing Trainer.
That was 10 months ago.
“Since I started using the product, my hip and shoulder mobility has improved so significantly,” Johnson said. “My core strength, my glute strength, my balance, my flexibility – it’s just a dramatic improvement all the way around.”
The biggest difference?
“I've unlocked my backswing,” he said. “I swing much more free and with a bunch more joy.”
Smith had already incorporated GolfForever into the learning center at Omaha Country Club. After 35 years of being in the golf industry, he’s seen plenty of training products come and go. What impressed him about GolfForever was its combination of mobility, flexibility, strength and rotational training.
He thought Johnson could benefit.
Johnson and fellow member Dr. Kevin Murphy had a simple benchmark: They wanted to hit their tee shots far enough on Omaha Country Club’s difficult, dogleg right opening hole to reach the top of a hill and leave themselves a clear view of the green.
Within months, they were doing it.
“The success lies in your commitment to the program,” Smith said. “He’s stuck with it. He’s persevered and he’s feeling better at 78 years old.”
The results extend well beyond just that one tee shot.
Johnson recently shot 76, breaking his age by two shots, and said he’s broken 80 five times this season. He’s also hitting his irons at least 10 yards farther. Those results and his commitment helped make Johnson GolfForever’s Forever Summer Challenge Biggest Breakthrough winner.
But Johnson’s biggest breakthrough might not be measured by his scorecard. GolfForever has become part of his daily routine because, he says, its benefits “transcend golf fitness, and spill into life fitness.” He’s noticed improvements in strength, flexibility, balance, cardiovascular conditioning and especially endurance.
“I can get around 18 holes like never before,” Johnson said.
That's particularly meaningful for someone who still enjoys walking demanding courses and has no intention of letting age dictate his relationship with the game.
