Detailed by GolfChannel.com<\/a>, Shoemaker had surgery last October for cubital tunnel syndrome in her right arm, after playing through \u201cexcruciating pain\u201d and numbness for nearly seven months. The pain was so extreme that it caused her fingers to come off the club at the top of her backswing.<\/p>\nThe 21-year-old claims she\u2019s fully healthy now, but the injury has taken a mental toll, delaying her pre-shot routine. Her coach, Justin Silverstein, said pre-injury, she was one of the quickest players he\u2019s coached.\u00a0<\/p>\n
And Shoemaker feels that one clip, which has over 2 million views, is an unfair representation of her.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cIt was better today. And, I mean, that was the worst one yesterday, of course, it went viral,\u201d she said. \u201cAnd I mean, you clearly don\u2019t see the rest of the round. You don\u2019t see me at home working out five hours a day, going to rehab, waking up before practice to go to rehab. You don\u2019t see what\u2019s behind the scenes.\u201d<\/p>\n
It\u2019s a far cry from where she was last year.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cI know I keep saying it, and I sound like a broken record, but like a year ago, I didn\u2019t know if I\u2019d be playing golf anymore,\u201d she said. \u201cThis was like, a pretty substantial injury, given it was my nerve. And I\u2019m happy to have motor function over my hand.<\/p>\n
\u201cI thought I was going to, like, lose my hand, basically. \u201cSo that\u2019s pretty scary to think about. So, I mean, to have control over my body is nice, for once. And just being out here playing is good.\u201d<\/p>\n
Golfweek reported<\/a> that Shoemaker called her coach to see if the video on social media could be taken down. But after the dust settled, she tried to use it as motivation.\u00a0<\/p>\n\u201cIf anything it was fuel,\u201d she said. \u201cI mean, my dad has trained me right, to use that as fuel to ignite me a little bit. But I didn\u2019t play too much mind to it. I\u2019m happy where I am, and I\u2019m making leaps and bounds in my health, and that\u2019s all I really care about.\u201d<\/p>\n