Where To Start With Knee Pain for Golfers
Knee pain can be a frustrating injury to deal with during the golf season. Trail side knee pain hinders your coil and how well you can load into the back swing, while lead side knee pain limits the critical breaking forces that whips the club around and creates efficient speed. Knee pain can destroy your ability to make consistent improvements to your scoring while at the same time diminishing your quality of life. Getting up and down off the floor or climbing a flight of stairs can be a major problem. It makes sense that knee replacements are the most common joint replacement done by orthopedic surgeons.
So where can you start to address knee pain while making it a priority to reduce inhibition and altered motor patterns from infecting your swing? I’ll break down a few movements below that work to address pain, improve control, and continue to create high speed and force from the lower extremity in the golf swing.
Of course, it is important to remember that a detailed exam and diagnosis is critical to getting this right. That being said, here are a few movements that can help in most cases of knee pain.
Movements that can help address chronic and acute knee pain
1. Wall sit
This is a simple and timeless movement. The reason for including it first for addressing pain is because of how isometric contractions, or static contractions, effect pain sensation and tolerance. By holding the joint angle in one position while the muscles around it contract, sensation of pain diminishes (to varying extents). This is a great way to start a session while also beginning the rehab process for building back strength around the knee joint at progressively deeper angles. Play around with more knee flexion (deeper down the wall) and play around with adding external load.
2. Lateral wall drive
This is another static loading drill that keeps one joint angle. We are also working hard in the position to integrate the ankle and hip with the knee joint as all three work to create maximum force. This is a drill we can self-regulate. Try to push into the wall as hard as you can.
Movements that can help address knee mobility
1. Foam roller hamstring curl
Here we are working on strength through flexion and extension. The hamstrings work hard here while we re-introduce active movement through the knee joint under load.
2. Slouching split squat
This is another difficult movement that will bring us back into deep knee flexion under weight bearing load. We want to focus as much as possible on clean knee flexion and feeling how pressing and driving the foot down hard will kick on more hip and knee musculature.
Movements that can help integrate multiple joints and multiple planes of motion
1. Kickstand hinge with rotation
Here we are primarily loading through the hip, but still stressing the knee and transferring the pressure throughout the lower extremity. We are also introducing rotation through the chain which WILL drive subtle rotation at the ankle and knee.
2. Bent to straight knee calf raise
We are more focused on strong contraction through flexion and extension at the knee here, but are also getting rotation of the pelvis on the hip while the foot and ankle maintain stability (stressing the stability of the knee joint in the middle of these two actions). Work on getting full extension of the knee and maximal contraction around the hip as you press up and away.
Movements that can help integrate force development in the golf swing
1. Single leg med ball slam
When we do this drill right, we force the lower extremity to work as hard as possible to create explosive force. We include rotation and sagittal plane movement as we limit the ability for the rehabbing knee to cheat or off-load onto the other side.
2. Step to shovel pass
This drill adds in the frontal plane (side to side) force generation and emphasizes the breaking forces we need from the lead side leg. No matter which knee is hurting, do this drill on both sides. This is a great drill for working through inhibition and gaining confidence in that knee again.
Conclusion
Knee pain in golfers is rarely just a knee problem. The knee sits between the hip and ankle, and limitations in strength, mobility, stability, or force production anywhere along the chain can affect both your symptoms and your golf swing. By starting with pain-modulating exercises such as wall sits and lateral wall drives, then progressing to mobility and strength-focused movements like foam roller hamstring curls and split squats, you can begin restoring the qualities necessary for both daily function and golf performance.
Remember, the goal is not simply to reduce pain—it is to rebuild confidence in movement, improve force transfer through the lower body, and return to a swing that is both powerful and efficient. If knee pain continues to limit your game or everyday activities, a comprehensive evaluation can help identify the true source of the problem and create a plan tailored to your body and your swing. The pain at the knee are often just the symptoms of a mobility/stability, or motor control problem elsewhere. With the right approach, most golfers can continue playing, improve performance, and keep knee pain from dictating what they can do on and off the course.
-Dr. Nick DC, MS, TPI, CSCS
If you would like to learn more about your body, pain, and performance, send Dr. Nick an email at contact@integratedrpc.com or call at (585)478-4379, or schedule a FREE discovery visit at Contact.
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