with one or both hands while sensing the shoulder with the other; back and forth he goes, comparing resistance, range of motion, muscle contractile efficiency and strength. One of MAT’s foundations is that muscles that are tight or not firing correctly— for example, the ones in Bertsch’s shoulder— result from weaknesses in other muscles. In this case, the pectoral, trapezius, deltoid and infraspinatus. “You have to have your torque generators and stabilizers firing efficiently,” Roskopf says. “You want to avoid putting stress on the shoulder.” Assessing and treating in the same hourlong session, Roskopf pushes and probes to activate the muscles that move Bertsch’s shoulder into the backswing position. “You have to consider all the muscles affecting the area,” Roskopf explains. “There’s a group that moves and a group that holds the bones. Their alignment has to be right. You have to understand biomechanics and do detective work.” That detective work occasionally requires medical assistance, so Roskopf recommends that Bertsch—who leaves feeling better but again reports pain while swinging the club—undergo an MRI. The results reveal a tear in the labrum—the stabilizing cartilage disc attached to the
shoulder socket—which also can weaken the attached ligaments. MAT doesn’t fix tears; surgery does. “Greg told me right away by testing my muscles that something was wrong in the rotator cuff area,” Bertsch says. “I think if I’d been seeing him regularly, and not been away on the Tour, he would have assessed the weakness earlier and have avoided surgery.” Bertsch considered just playing through the pain. But there’d be no time to rest it, since the PGA Tour no longer has an off-season. Besides, he says, “it wasn’t going to heal itself; I worked too hard to get back on the Tour not to get this fixed.” He underwent surgery to repair the tear and, although doctors said
“Greg really is a miracle worker,” Bertsch says. “Even if I go to him without an injury, he gets me moving better and feeling stronger. He gets my body more lively and fired up.... Once we get the mobility back in my shoulder, I know for sure he’ll help. I believe 100 percent in what he does.” coloradoavidgolfer.com
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May 2016 | COLORADO AVIDGOLFER