Injured Denny McCarthy adopts Memphis grit and grind, tied for FedEx St. Jude Championship lead
Denny McCarthy’s early success at the FedEx St. Jude Championship doesn’t tell the full story. The PGA Tour golfer is in Memphis, and he’s now adopting the city’s gritty mentality.
McCarthy is in pain. So much pain that he’s having to alter his swing while dealing with a torn labrum in his hip.
He mostly feels the pain on the downswing. He has to alter his rotation by pushing up through the ground more than he’s used to. The injury appeared to have surfaced during his Friday round at TPC Southwind, where he shot 7-under-par 63. He’s tied with Hideki Matsuyama for the tournament lead at 11 under after Round 2.
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“Yeah, I don’t want to divulge too much,” McCarthy said. “It’s bothering me, and I’ve been able to do enoughthe last few days to push through it.”
The sweltering Memphis heat sometimes gets a bad reputation for its impact at TPC Southwind, but in the case of McCarthy, it has been helpful. Loosening up the hip is important, and the heat has been helping with that.
“It feels really good,” he said. “I haven’t been thinking about it too much, which is nice. Just kind of been focused on — sounds cliché, I’ve just been focused on each shot really, trying to put the same amount of importance and focus into each shot.”
McCarthy entered the FedEx St. Jude championship with odds at +15,000 to win, putting him just outside of the top 50 projected winners. The 31-year-old is still searching for his first career PGA Tour win despite some impressive performances this season. He notably finished second at the Valero Texas Open in April and had top-seven results at the John Deere Classic and Wells Fargo Championship.
A strong start on Thursday with a 4-under 66 allowed McCarthy to jump ahead and lead the field, but he’ll have to grit and grind his way to the finish line.
As for after the tournament, McCarthy hasn’t ruled out the idea of surgery.
“I don’t know yet,” he said. “I’m not looking that far ahead. I’m kind of just focused on trying to get bettereach day this week, and that’s all I’m really focused on.”
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Damichael Cole is the Memphis Grizzlies beat writer for The Commercial Appeal. Contact Damichael at damichael.cole@commercialappeal.com. Follow Damichael on X, formerly known as Twitter, @DamichaelC.
This article originally appeared on Memphis Commercial Appeal: At FedEx St. Jude Championship, Denny McCarthy fighting torn labrum
