Opinion & Analysis
Are golfers wasting their time icing injuries?
Even in a world of “doctors used to say it was good for you, now they say it’s bad,” this one is a shocker: The doctor who coined the acronym RICE (rest, ice, compression, elevation) in 1978 has decided that the (complete) rest and ice are not beneficial to treating injuries.
Dr. Gabe Mirkin, whose RICE treatment plan has been the standard method of dealing with sports injuries for more than 30 years, recently published a blog post that says, in part:
When I wrote my best-selling Sportsmedicine Book in 1978, I coined the term RICE (Rest, Ice, Compression, Elevation) for the treatment of athletic injuries … Ice has been a standard treatment for injuries and sore muscles because it helps to relieve pain caused by injured tissue. Coaches have used my “RICE” guideline for decades, but now it appears that both ice and complete rest may delay healing, instead of helping.
You can read the entirety of Dr. Mirkin’s post here.
This information is significant and could represent a paradigm shift in the treatment of sports injuries in general and golf-related injuries in particular. Simply, reducing inflammation was previously seen as essential to healing. Now Dr. Mirkin and others view inflammation as vital to the healing process. Certainly, there is a gross parallel here with allowing your body to fight off infection vs. antibiotic overkill. As I am not a doctor, however, I’ll leave it at that.
Returning to the matter at hand, as anti-icing advocate Josh Stone of Stone Athletic Management writes: “A shift in paradigmatic treatment is on the horizon. Exercise is heating up and ice is melting down.” By “exercise,” it seems, Stone means load bearing and rehabilitation (alternated with rest) is the advisable course of action. In another post on his website, Stone gives the example of an athlete with a stress fracture to the leg whose been advised to wear a non-weight bearing boot. Stone’s remedy? “An intricate balance between rest and mechanical loading of bone to obtain optimal healing”
In keeping with this idea: Generally, Dr. Mirkin’s advice following injury is as follows:
- Stop exercising immediately.
- If possible, elevate the injured part to use gravity to help minimize swelling.
- If the injury is limited to muscles or other soft tissue, a doctor, trainer or coach may apply a compression bandage.
- Ice may be applied to reduce pain, however, it’s pointless to apply ice more than 6 hours after injury.
- If the injury is severe, follow your doctor’s advice on rehabilitation.
- If the injury is minor, you can usually begin rehabilitation the next day.
The entirety of the new direction of treatment following Dr. Mirkin’s study may only be apparent only to the most progressive doctors, kinesiologists, trainers and exercise physiologists. It is clear, however, that if Mirkin’s current suggestions catch on in the same way as his directions in 1978 did, your rehab and treatment for injury (golf or otherwise) won’t involve anything that lives in the freezer.
Aronimink is not a storied club, but when Donald Ross himself proclaimed it to be as good as he can design and build, one had to take notice. Jay Sigel was the pre-eminent male amateur golfer from the mid-1970s to the mid-1990s. He might have called any number of Philadelphia clubs home, but he chose Aronimink. It served him well. Gary Player won a PGA Championship here in 1962, and was followed by the 1993 winner … nobody. Aronimink gave that event away to Inverness, for reasons of which it is certainly not proud. So be it. We had to wait sixty-four years for the PGA to return to Newtown Square, but here we are. Aronimink has been neo-restored by Gil Hanse and team, to return Ross features with an eye toward defense against the dark arts, errrr, high-tech equipment.
Day one saw Rory McIlroy and Bryson DeChambeau dig big holes, to the tune of plus-four and plus-six, respectively. Since the first-round lead will be minus-three at worst, many shots will need to be made up for the power couple to reach contention. By nightfall, seven golfers held the day-one lead at three-under par 67. Shots and sticks caught our attention, and we are proud to present Five Things We Learned on Tech Thursday at the 2026 PGA Championship. Thanks to InsideTourGolfer, Today’s Golfer, and GolfWRX for initial equipment research.
First, meet Min Woo Lee
Min Woo Lee, aka Dr. Chipinski, has once again thrust himself into the conversation of Can he, will he, when will he? Lee has so much talent, wins not nearly as often as we believe that he should, and has no major near-misses (much less titles) on his wiki. The young Aussie is getting older and wiser, but is he able to avoid the scarring that holds the older and wiser back from breaking through? Philadelphia offers another opportunity. Min Woo signed for five birdies and two bogeys on day one, and grabbed a share of the opening-day lead at Aronimink. Winners transcend history and the moment, and Lee will need that sort of ascent to lift the Wannamaker on Sunday.
Second, meet Aldrich Potgeiter
The young South African golfer can rip driver with the best of them. Aronimink tips out at nearly 7400 yards, but beyond the fairway bunkers that ensnare only the mortals, Potgeiter can take his chances with wedge from the rough. On Thursday, he spent plenty of time in the spinach. Like Popeye, he used his muscles to gouge and thrash and dig his way out. Six birdies against three bogeys on the card brought AP in a three deep.
Third, meet Martin Kaymer
Not a major event takes place without a where’s he been throwback moment. We know that Martin Kaymer left the PGA and DP World tours for LIV golf, but the two-time (US Open and PGA) major winner has a lifetime exemption into at least one major event, and he seizes the opportunity each May. Kaymer joined the six-seven brigade with four birdies and a solitary bogey on day one. Kaymer was never a long hitter, and the years are kind to no golfer. The German champion will need to uncork every bottle of guile and strategy in his cabinet to remain in contention. For today, though, he occupies a rung on the ladder of Tour Tech.
Fourth, meet Scottie Scheffler
Let’s see, he’s the defending champion at the PGA, and he found his way back to the top tier with five birdies against two bogeys. To be a favorite and then play up to that stature and expectation is quite difficult. Just ask Rory, Bryson, and some of the other pre-tournament heartthrobs. Scheffler’s game is complete, and to knock him off the OWGR #1 pedestal, one needs to defeat him at the majors. Aronimink is the sort of course that fits Scheffler’s game. Better yet, it unfits the game of many of his challengers. Don’t expect Scheffler to go away anytime soon. Come Sunday, he’ll be around.
Fifth, meet Stephan Jaeger
Clocking in for the unheralded players shift are Ryo Hisatsune and Stephan Jaeger. Hisatsune logged seven birdies on day one, but gave most of them back with four bogeys. Still, he’s tied at the top for a time. Jaeger pitched five birdies against two bogeys, including a run of three consecutive, from holes four through six. Odds are that one of the two will hang around through 36 holes. Odds also suggest that both will be gone by Saturday evening. Still, the PGA Championship has historically been the major most likely to be won by an under-known. Both Hisatsune and Jaeger feature on that list, so good luck, lads!
On this episode of the Club Junkie Podcast, I head to the Titleist Performance Institute for a full driver fitting with the new Titleist GTS lineup. We dive into the fitting process, talk about what made the biggest difference in performance, and break down how the different GTS heads and shaft combinations compare on the launch monitor. If you are thinking about a new driver setup for this season, there is a lot to take away from this one.
I also get into Brooks Koepka and the gear setup he brought to the PGA Championship, including the putters that caught my eye during the week. There are some interesting equipment trends showing up at the highest level right now and we break down what stands out.
To wrap things up, I talk about reshafting a few wedges, what I learned during the process, and swapping an adaptor onto a new shaft for another build project in the shop. A gear packed episode from start to finish for anyone who loves golf equipment and club building.
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Excited for this week’s WITB as we get to add the new Titleist GTS woods to the bag! I was fit at Titleist’s TPI facility in Oceanside California a few weeks ago and my new clubs just showed up. I am also adding a cool set of irons that I built last year some wild custom wedges into a new golf bag. Speaking of the bag I have a new Ghost Anyday Black Ops stand bag that I will be using on my Motocaddy Remote M7 electric cart.
Driver: Titleist GTS3 (11 degrees @ 10.25)
Shaft: Fujikura Ventus Red 6s
3-wood: Titleist GT1 3Tour (14.5 degrees)
Shaft: Graphite Design Tour AD CQ-7s
5-wood: Titleist GTS (18 degrees)
Shaft: Fujikura Ventus Red 7s
9-wood: Titleist GT1 (24 degress)
Shaft: Fujikura Ventus Red 7s
Irons: Bettinardi CB24 (5-PW)
Shafts: KBS C-Taper Lite 110 stiff
Wedge: TaylorMade MG5 (50-09 SB)
Shaft: Mitsubishi MMT 125 Stiff
Wedge: TaylorMade MG5 (56-12 SB)
Shaft: Mitsubishi MMT 125 Stiff
Wedge: TaylorMade MG5 (60-08 LB)
Shaft: Mitsubishi MMT 125 Stiff
Putter: Dan Carraher ZT Proto
Ball: Callaway Chrome Tour
Bag: Ghost Anyday Black Ops Stand Bag
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leftright
Apr 30, 2014 at 8:08 pm
Icing an injury, especially an acute tendonitis, mild muscle injury or a joint that has been over extended works quite well. I have been observing results for 4 decades and despite the good doctor’s turn around it is still preferable to doing nothing at all. I can even say, observable results from non-iced to iced injuries will take longer to heal and can actually cause chronic conditions. Instead of RICE, maybe another acronym like NIE would be better, NSAIDS, Ice and elevation. Compression usually does not work and if done incorrectly will cause more injury and swelling. ACE wraps are more for mild immobilization than compression anyway. To do away with ice in a sports environment, especially at a higher level of play is tantamount to negligence and assuredly will cause exacerbation of conditions in the long term. This article reminds me of the “Sugar Blues” book that came out in the 70’s that ended up not being worth the paper it was printed on.
Dean ATC
Apr 30, 2014 at 11:34 pm
There are so many things wrong with this post….I don’t even know where to start. So I’ll do it this way…
1. Compression DOES work; and it’s even more effective when used with exercise
2. Compression will NOT cause more injury and swelling (seriously, where did you come up with that one?)
3. ACE wraps don’t immobilize anything (and unless something is fractured, there is really no reason to completely immobilize anything)
4. The only thing ice is good for is mild analgesia. That’s the only reason I use it on my athletes. After 24 hours…..no more ice.
Dr. G
Apr 29, 2014 at 6:37 pm
Stone gives the example of an athlete with a stress fracture to the leg whose been advised to wear a non-weight bearing boot. Stone’s remedy? “An intricate balance between rest and mechanical loading of bone to obtain optimal healing”
Any physician not recommending nearly complete offloading for a stress fracture is beyond ludacris. Should that stress reaction turn into a frank fracture due to a lack of informing a patient that it is a possibility with “loading of bone”, the physician will find themself in a sticky situation. Wait 4-6 weeks, observe films along with signs and symptoms, then move on with loading.
Em
Apr 30, 2014 at 8:28 pm
Ludacris? You mean ludicrous? You ain’t no Dr.
Chris
Apr 30, 2014 at 11:35 pm
Ain’t? Do you mean are not? I love the grammar battles.
Travis
May 1, 2014 at 8:44 am
Maybe he’s talking about the rapper… so perhaps he means “beyond controversial”.
Alex the Athletic Trainer
Apr 29, 2014 at 2:35 pm
Ben, first of all please refrain from calling us “trainers” we go to school for 4-6 years to become a certified athletic trainer from an accredited program at an accredited university as opposed to “trainers” who take an online class and teach people how to lift. Secondly, I have been following this article for a while now, and have done a lot of research on my own. Ice is important to help with pain management as well as to keep inflammation at a manageable level. I agree that icing after 24 hours is more or less a placebo/band aid for what is going on. Rehab is the only thing that will help to repair the damage done from an acute injury.
There is still a lot of research that needs to be done, but ice is not the enemy like Dr. Mirkin and his followers like to portray.
The Dr
Apr 29, 2014 at 12:01 pm
Just take an anti-inflammatory medication instead, as long as you are not allergic. But – ice is definitely good for concentrated, directed use onto the area immediately inflamed by impact.
But lets not bring up bone fractures into this mix – you’re confusing different issues there, entirely. No amount of ice is going to HEAL bone fractures. It will, however, still alleviate some of the pain in the area surrounding the bone fracture IF there is any inflammation of the muscle or tissues.
Reducing inflammation is the issue, and ice is OK for those who do not want to ingest any kind anti-inflammatory medication.
Dean ATC
Apr 30, 2014 at 11:42 pm
But that gets to the central question around this entire issue….which is why do we want to stop inflammation? Somewhere along the way we have gotten it into our heads that inflammation is the devil. When in fact, it is necessary for healing. It is our bodies natural reaction to injury and illness…..so it’s obviously supposed to occur (our body is pretty smart). Yet we want to ice and take NSAIDS and intentionally stop our bodies natural healing mechanism. Makes no sense.
Chris
Apr 29, 2014 at 10:44 am
While I agree that sharp, sudden injuries may not benefit from ice (ACL, torn muscle, dislocated shoulder) I think it is important to understand that ice treatment can be greatly beneficial to long term injury prevention.
If someone has tendinitis, but still wants to play the sport that is causing the tendinitis, frequent icing will keep the inflammation at a manageable level allowing the athlete to continue to compete. For example, you’ll see most basketball players icing their knees after a game. Similarly baseball pitchers will ice their entire throwing arm after an outing. Again, this helps control the inflammation and pain to allow the athlete to continue to be healthy and effective throughout a long season.
Joe
Apr 29, 2014 at 3:20 pm
It is becoming more common for pitchers to limit their icing. More influence is coming from Japan, where pitchers don’t ice their arm and have far fewer arm injuries. Correlation is not causation but it has been noticed. Active stretching and heat are becoming en vogue.
leftright
Apr 30, 2014 at 8:13 pm
I would be more inclined to cite genetics versus treatment of chronic arm conditions, especially in pitchers at the professional level. Another thing that contributes is the way young people are taught to play the game versus Japan. A study, maybe by one of those educated trainers trying to get his MS or PhD. would provide more insight into Japan versus the US pitchers.
Pete
Apr 29, 2014 at 10:28 am
On most occasions the bullet: Stop exercising immediately is struck over and the round or what ever payed scheduled tennis court or alike is exploited to it’s full extent. Unless one cannot do anything but roll in pain and agony.