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Yahoo
21-07-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
How PGA Tour pros recover from travel and golf fatigue — and what you can do, too
Sam Burns and Wyndham Clark both made the cut last week at the British Open and are scheduled to play this week in the PGA Tour's 3M Open in the Twin Cities, Minnesota. To get there, they first have to drive about an hour from Royal Portrush, Northern Ireland, to Belfast International Airport. From there, it's a nearly nine-hour flight across six time zones to Minneapolis-St. Paul. So if they left on an 8 p.m. flight Sunday, they'd land around 11 p.m. local time on the same day in Minnesota. But after playing 72 holes of major championship golf and spending the last two weeks on British Summer Time, it would still feel like 5 a.m. to their bodies. That long flight, the time change and the physical toll a major championship can take on a player will make even the fittest golfers exhausted. It's why so many top pros not chasing FedEx Cup points are skipping the 3M Open — they need time to recover. You weren't chasing the Claret Jug, but if you've played 36 holes in a day, tackled a buddy trip to somewhere like Bandon Dunes or Pinehurst or survived a weekend member-guest marathon, you've felt that same heavy-legged fatigue. So, how do the best players in the world bounce back — and what can you learn from their routines to speed up your recovery and help you feel refreshed and ready to play again? Compression therapy: Squeeze out the waste Step inside the physio trailers at PGA Tour events and you'll see several pairs of long, black zip-up leggings with hoses coming out of the top of each legging. These are Normatec 3 leggings ($899), also known as compression boots, which are a favorite tool among players for flushing the legs after long rounds or workouts. After zipping their legs into the boots and attaching the hoses to a small base unit, the Normatec device alternately inflates and deflates the boots, much like a blood pressure cuff around a player's feet, ankles, knees and thighs. 'What the Normatec does is like squeezing toothpaste from the bottom of a tube, squeezing it all out,' said Corey Hug, a PGA Tour physical therapist who travels to numerous events a year to help players. 'It squeezes fluid back in your system, goes back to your heart through your kidneys, and you get it out. So things like lactic acid, which is build up from working out, along with other metabolic waste, it squeezes all that heaviness out of the legs. And when the legs are done, they feel lighter, fluids circulating, you're ready to go again.' Many players will even use Normatec boots before workouts if their legs feel tired, helping them get circulation moving before hitting the gym or the course. Hyperice, the company that manufactures Normatec boots, also offers tubeless Normatec Elite boots ($1,099). This version, which is more portable and packable, utilizes rechargeable units in each boot instead of relying on a base unit to supply the pressure for both leggings. Percussive therapy: Thumping out the tension In 2020, the PGA Tour formed a partnership with Hyperice, maker of popular percussive therapy devices often called therapy guns. These handheld, battery-operated tools deliver rapid, targeted pulses to areas of the body that feel tight or sore. The rapid percussion helps increase blood flow to specific muscles, reduces stiffness and aids in recovery by loosening up tissue that can become rigid after repeated swings, travel or extended practice sessions. These devices are small enough to pack in a carry-on, easy to use and come with interchangeable tips to target different muscle groups. At many PGA Tour stops, players can grab a therapy gun from carts stationed near the driving range to use as part of their warm-up. Hydration and nutrition: In with the good, out with the bad Flying is brutal on the body, largely because airplane cabins are low in humidity to prevent condensation and corrosion. The air pressure is lower at altitude, which, combined with drier air and increased respiration rates, causes the body to lose moisture faster than usual. Add in the typical snacks — processed meats, salty chips, sugary drinks — and it's easy to see why a flight can leave you feeling stiff and inflamed. Some top-tier golfers travel with personal chefs, but a valuable resource available to all PGA Tour players is the on-site nutritionist, provided at many tournaments. 'We do discuss nutrition a lot,' Hug said. 'Like, what are good things to eat before or good things to eat after you play? What are good things to do for hydration? The PGA Tour does have a nutritionist that actually travels to quite a few tournaments, and aside from just picking what foods are going to be in the player dining, they actually will consult with any player at any time about their nutrition needs.' While most recreational golfers don't have a nutritionist on speed dial, focusing on anti-inflammatory foods can help the body bounce back faster. According to Harvard Medical School, eating leafy greens like spinach and kale, as well as fatty fish such as salmon and tuna, berries and nuts like almonds and walnuts, can help reduce inflammation and support your body's recovery after a long day on the course — or a long flight. Hit the gym: Move to feel better Jon Rahm is based in Scottsdale, Arizona, but his schedule on the LIV Golf tour and his participation in major championships have him flying all over the world. After a long trip, you might assume the first thing the two-time major winner wants to do is take a nap. That wouldn't be terrible, but Rahm does the exact opposite. 'If you have time and [access to] a gym or whatever it may be, get a little bit of exercise in,' Rahm said recently. 'It doesn't need to be crazy. It could be 30, 40 minutes of just some kind of stretching or whatever to get the blood flowing a little bit more so your body can just naturally recover and get things moving.' Many hotels and golf resorts offer fitness facilities, but even a brisk 20-minute walk upon arrival can help improve circulation and ease stiffness. 'I found that being very beneficial when I go across the Atlantic, when you go to Europe, Dubai flights like that,' Rahm said. 'But landing and going straight to the gym, and actually if it's mid-afternoon trying to get a hard workout in, has helped me by far the most get over jet lag and things like that. It's like a reset to the body.' The takeaway You may not have a fitness trailer, a physio team or a nutritionist traveling with you, but the blueprint for recovery is the same: keep your body moving, stay hydrated, eat smart and give your muscles a little help when they're tight or sore. Whether it's a therapy gun in your golf bag, compression sleeves in your suitcase or a gym session after your next flight, these are simple ways to help you feel fresher and play better — even if the only thing on the line is the weekend game with your buddies. This article originally appeared on Golfweek: How PGA Tour pros recover: Compression, therapy guns, nutrition, gym
USA Today
21-07-2025
- Sport
- USA Today
How PGA Tour pros recover from travel and golf fatigue — and what you can do, too
It's a long way from Royal Portrush to Minneapolis. Discover the recovery tools PGA Tour pros use to bounce back from majors and long flights. Sam Burns and Wyndham Clark both made the cut last week at the British Open and are scheduled to play this week in the PGA Tour's 3M Open in the Twin Cities, Minnesota. To get there, they first have to drive about an hour from Royal Portrush, Northern Ireland, to Belfast International Airport. From there, it's a nearly nine-hour flight across six time zones to Minneapolis-St. Paul. So if they left on an 8 p.m. flight Sunday, they'd land around 11 p.m. local time on the same day in Minnesota. But after playing 72 holes of major championship golf and spending the last two weeks on British Summer Time, it would still feel like 5 a.m. to their bodies. That long flight, the time change and the physical toll a major championship can take on a player will make even the fittest golfers exhausted. It's why so many top pros not chasing FedEx Cup points are skipping the 3M Open — they need time to recover. You weren't chasing the Claret Jug, but if you've played 36 holes in a day, tackled a buddy trip to somewhere like Bandon Dunes or Pinehurst or survived a weekend member-guest marathon, you've felt that same heavy-legged fatigue. So, how do the best players in the world bounce back — and what can you learn from their routines to speed up your recovery and help you feel refreshed and ready to play again? Compression therapy: Squeeze out the waste Step inside the physio trailers at PGA Tour events and you'll see several pairs of long, black zip-up leggings with hoses coming out of the top of each legging. These are Normatec 3 leggings ($899), also known as compression boots, which are a favorite tool among players for flushing the legs after long rounds or workouts. After zipping their legs into the boots and attaching the hoses to a small base unit, the Normatec device alternately inflates and deflates the boots, much like a blood pressure cuff around a player's feet, ankles, knees and thighs. 'What the Normatec does is like squeezing toothpaste from the bottom of a tube, squeezing it all out,' said Corey Hug, a PGA Tour physical therapist who travels to numerous events a year to help players. 'It squeezes fluid back in your system, goes back to your heart through your kidneys, and you get it out. So things like lactic acid, which is build up from working out, along with other metabolic waste, it squeezes all that heaviness out of the legs. And when the legs are done, they feel lighter, fluids circulating, you're ready to go again.' Many players will even use Normatec boots before workouts if their legs feel tired, helping them get circulation moving before hitting the gym or the course. Hyperice, the company that manufactures Normatec boots, also offers tubeless Normatec Elite boots ($1,099). This version, which is more portable and packable, utilizes rechargeable units in each boot instead of relying on a base unit to supply the pressure for both leggings. Percussive therapy: Thumping out the tension In 2020, the PGA Tour formed a partnership with Hyperice, maker of popular percussive therapy devices often called therapy guns. These handheld, battery-operated tools deliver rapid, targeted pulses to areas of the body that feel tight or sore. The rapid percussion helps increase blood flow to specific muscles, reduces stiffness and aids in recovery by loosening up tissue that can become rigid after repeated swings, travel or extended practice sessions. These devices are small enough to pack in a carry-on, easy to use and come with interchangeable tips to target different muscle groups. At many PGA Tour stops, players can grab a therapy gun from carts stationed near the driving range to use as part of their warm-up. Hydration and nutrition: In with the good, out with the bad Flying is brutal on the body, largely because airplane cabins are low in humidity to prevent condensation and corrosion. The air pressure is lower at altitude, which, combined with drier air and increased respiration rates, causes the body to lose moisture faster than usual. Add in the typical snacks — processed meats, salty chips, sugary drinks — and it's easy to see why a flight can leave you feeling stiff and inflamed. Some top-tier golfers travel with personal chefs, but a valuable resource available to all PGA Tour players is the on-site nutritionist, provided at many tournaments. 'We do discuss nutrition a lot,' Hug said. 'Like, what are good things to eat before or good things to eat after you play? What are good things to do for hydration? The PGA Tour does have a nutritionist that actually travels to quite a few tournaments, and aside from just picking what foods are going to be in the player dining, they actually will consult with any player at any time about their nutrition needs.' While most recreational golfers don't have a nutritionist on speed dial, focusing on anti-inflammatory foods can help the body bounce back faster. According to Harvard Medical School, eating leafy greens like spinach and kale, as well as fatty fish such as salmon and tuna, berries and nuts like almonds and walnuts, can help reduce inflammation and support your body's recovery after a long day on the course — or a long flight. Hit the gym: Move to feel better Jon Rahm is based in Scottsdale, Arizona, but his schedule on the LIV Golf tour and his participation in major championships have him flying all over the world. After a long trip, you might assume the first thing the two-time major winner wants to do is take a nap. That wouldn't be terrible, but Rahm does the exact opposite. 'If you have time and [access to] a gym or whatever it may be, get a little bit of exercise in,' Rahm said recently. 'It doesn't need to be crazy. It could be 30, 40 minutes of just some kind of stretching or whatever to get the blood flowing a little bit more so your body can just naturally recover and get things moving.' Many hotels and golf resorts offer fitness facilities, but even a brisk 20-minute walk upon arrival can help improve circulation and ease stiffness. 'I found that being very beneficial when I go across the Atlantic, when you go to Europe, Dubai flights like that,' Rahm said. 'But landing and going straight to the gym, and actually if it's mid-afternoon trying to get a hard workout in, has helped me by far the most get over jet lag and things like that. It's like a reset to the body.' The takeaway You may not have a fitness trailer, a physio team or a nutritionist traveling with you, but the blueprint for recovery is the same: keep your body moving, stay hydrated, eat smart and give your muscles a little help when they're tight or sore. Whether it's a therapy gun in your golf bag, compression sleeves in your suitcase or a gym session after your next flight, these are simple ways to help you feel fresher and play better — even if the only thing on the line is the weekend game with your buddies.
The Irish Sun
24-06-2025
- The Irish Sun
Europe's worst airports revealed including popular Irish hub with passengers waiting up to FIVE hours at security
THE worst airports have been revealed this week - with one spot that's popular with Irish jetsetters making the list. As holiday season booms, we take a look at which airport will have you waiting hours before take-off? Advertisement 4 The worst airports have been revealed with one Irish spot making the list 4 Belfast International Airport placed number 13 on the list Credit: Belfast International Airport Arriving at the airport at least three hours before your flight takes off is an unwritten rule in Ireland that everyone follows. But this is set to go out with the window as has put together a list of the worst airports based on four- or five-star reviews for 'airport queueing time' on . Numerous airports were ranked with a low star rating by frequent flyers, with one Irish airport featured on the list. Belfast International Airport received a low rating of two out of 10 stars on the airliner ranking site. Advertisement READ MORE ON TRAVEL While only placing 13th on the list, it is above Belgium, which has a whopping five-hour wait at its security checkpoint. Located in Northern Ireland the airport sees over 200 flights leaving per day. The UK airport had one of the longest queues along with Grenoble, , and Venice Treviso. One passenger said: "I am sad to say that this airport is the worst I have ever encountered in all my years travelling!" Advertisement Most read in Travel As they compared the building to a jail, " The staff are overly officious, the atmosphere is more reminiscent of a prison that an airport. " Belfast International Airport received numerous negative reviews from frequent flyers, but one passenger thought differently. Scots heading for Qatar face travel chaos amid Middle East missile blitz Not all is that bad at the Belfast location, as one passenger reassured holiday goers. They stated: "I've seen a lot of bad reviews of this airport but I wanted to reassure people that the airport is not as bad as it seems." Advertisement And the Republic of Ireland is sadly no better, with Dublin Airport receiving a rating of four out of 10 on Most passengers were upset over the customer service rather than the waiting time at the largest airport in Ireland. The World's Worst Airports For Queues The percentage of passengers who gave four or five star reviews for 'airport queueing time' on Grenoble, France: 1.59 per cent Montego Bay, Jamaica: 3.23 per cent Berlin, Germany: 5.73 per cent Punta Cana, Dominican Republic: 6.98 per cent Bordeaux, France: 7.01 per cent Paris Beauvais, France: 8.77 per cent Hurghada, Egypt: 8.82 per cent London Stansted, UK: 8.88 per cent Newark, US: 9.09 per cent London Luton, UK: 9.48 per cent Heraklion, Greece: 9.68 per cent Honolulu, US: 9.72 per cent Belfast International, UK: 10.53 per cent Brussels, Belgium: 10.77 per cent Geneva, Switzerland: 10.79 per cent Kuwait International: 11.11 per cent Lyon, France: 11.11 per cent Aruba: 11.54 per cent Kos, Greece: 11.54 per cent Venice Treviso, Italy: 11.54 per cent One traveller echoed " I departed from Dublin airport a few times this year, and I was shocked by the rude manner in which some passengers were treated by a few Airport security staff. "Maybe it is time to call on the Irish Tourism Board about this." Advertisement Two other UK airports also made the list - and Luton. has average recorded wait times of 42 minutes including security and passport control, while is 41 minutes. Brussels actually landed behind Belfast in 14th place, but did get a 'special mention' for its incredibly long queues. The airport in the capital of Belgium is a hugely busy airport, sometimes seeing 70,000 passengers a day - resulting in particularly long wait times. Advertisement There have been reports of lines that have left passengers waiting for five hours just to get through security alone. 4 Paris Beauvais Airport was ranked sixth worst on the list Credit: Getty 4 Luton International Airport ranked 10th on the list Credit: Getty
Irish Post
29-05-2025
- Business
- Irish Post
Ryanair marks major milestone at Belfast airport
MORE than six million people have been carried through Belfast International Airport via Ryanair flights the Irish airline has confirmed. The low-cost airline has been operating out of the Northern Irish airport since 2016. It now has two aircraft based at the site, where it boasts a schedule of 176 weekly flights across 19 routes, including a newly announced route to Kaunas in Lithuania. This week the airline reached its six million passenger milestone at the airport. 'We're pleased to announce that Ryanair has carried over six million passengers through Belfast International Airport since we began operations back in 2016,' Ryanair's Director of Comms, Jade Kirwan, said. 'This significant milestone showcases Ryanair's continued support and investment for Belfast, delivering important connectivity, traffic, tourism, jobs, and economic growth for Northern Ireland.' She added: 'This summer, Ryanair is operating a robust schedule to/from Belfast with 176 weekly flights across 19 routes, including our new Kaunas route. 'This schedule will largely operate on our two Belfast based aircraft – an investment of $200m and supporting over 1,000 local jobs.' See More: Belfst International Airpor, Flights, Investment, Ryanair
Sunday World
17-05-2025
- Sunday World
Belfast airport and easyJet apologise after disabled OAP left waiting on plane
'I've been getting special assistance for five or six years and it is arranged in advance of my flights' Belfast International Airport has apologised to a disabled pensioner who was forced to stay on a plane after delays to special assistance. The 75-year-old Bangor man and his wife (72) had already faced a 'three-hour delay' on the easyJet flight to Majorca and were then forced to wait another hour for special assistance to be taken off the return flight back in Belfast. And when they eventually gained access to the Northern Ireland port, immigration officers had left their customs desks leaving the couple stranded for some time to have their passports checked. The pensioner, who wished to remain anonymous, hit out at what he claims is 'chronic under-staffing' of special assistance. Belfast International Airport He said: 'The problem with Belfast International Airport was on the night. There were five flights in before us and we ended up doing laps of Lough Neagh waiting to land. 'At Belfast they have a Combi-Lift and vehicle, which is a machine that comes along and is raised up to the plane door so that you get off on your wheelchair. I understand that there may have been a lift that was out of action because it is damaged and needed to be repaired. 'On the way out to Majorca we had a three-hour delay and got to our rooms at 6am and I also ended up in hospital there, with pneumonia. So, it was eventful enough even at that point. 'On the return, back to Belfast we ended up having to sit on the plane for the best part of an hour - 50 minutes for sure - before we were able to get off. You can't use the loo, which surprised me and there was no offer of any water. And then when we did get off, of course there was no one at the desk [immigration] and I was told , 'No, you can't get into the country'.' The delays to immigration were resolved soon afterwards. He added: 'I've been getting special assistance for five or six years and it is arranged in advance of my flights. I have osteoporosis and have cracks at the bottom of my spine, so I don't do standing for very long at all or walk any distance. 'As well as that my right ankle became fused years back and I also have atrial-fibrillation, which is an irregular heartbeat, which leaves me breathless, that's why I have to have the wheelchair. 'The truth of the matter from my point of view would be that, if you go to any other airport in the UK and certainly even in Majorca, they are not understaffed for people who are prepared to push wheelchairs and that type of work. It's really chronic under-staffing for special assistance in my opinion.' An easyJet spokesperson said: 'This is clearly not an acceptable experience and absolutely not what we expect for our customers, and we are looking into why this happened with the airport and their special assistance provider. There were problems on the easyJet flight. Stock photo. News in 90 Seconds - May 17th 'Our crew remained onboard with the passenger while waiting for the airport's special assistance to arrive to ensure his well-being and water and toilets onboard were available.' Stormont and the Government's Levelling Up fund has previously provided Belfast International with several million pounds in funding for investment in transport support. Persons of Reduced Mobility using Belfast International Airport are provided with assistance as and when required on their journey through the airport at no extra cost, according to the airport's website. Belfast International recently completed the first phase of its £100m upgrade and expansion redevelopment plans. An airport spokesperson said: 'The safety and comfort of all the passengers that travel through Belfast International Airport is our priority and we are deeply sorry that the service experienced on this occasion was below our usual high standards. 'This was due to a number of aircraft arriving earlier or later than their scheduled arrival time and a number of passengers requiring assistance who had not booked, which conflated the problem. 'The provision of Special Assistance in every UK airport is audited by the Civil Aviation Authority and we work closely with them to ensure we are providing the highest standard of care for the over 110,000 passengers who require Special Assistance at Belfast International Airport every year. 'Belfast International Airport has received a Good rating from the CAA for its Special Assistance provision. We again apologise for the inconvenience caused to the passenger and would be happy to discuss the issue with the passenger directly.'
