Sam Saunders finished T-4 at Hotel Fitness Champ. weeks after fractured skull
Sam Saunders finished tied for fourth at the Hotel Fitness Championship on Sunday, with the check going a long way to locking up his 2015-16 PGA Tour status through the four-event Web.com Tour Finals.
Imagine if Saunders had little time to prepare for the first event in the series. Unfortunately, several weeks ago, Saunders fell while riding an electric scooter, suffering an epidural hematoma and other injuries that forced him into a multi-night hospital stay.
“I had a fractured skull, a brain bleed,” Saunders said, according to PGATour.com. “I had a severe concussion and all that stuff. I was unconscious for two minutes before the ambulance came. I spent a couple of nights in the hospital.”
The 28-year-old, who finished 137th in FedEx Cup points this season, didn’t make a full swing until the Friday before the Hotel Fitness Championship. Once the tournament began, Saunders’ lack of energy, spent recovering, caused him to hit the ball much shorter than usual.
Saunders’ T-4 finish should be good enough to lock up his full 2015-16 PGA Tour status, which may have influenced his decision to skip this week’s Small Business Connection Championship in North Carolina, the second event in the Web.com Tour Finals, in an effort to regain some energy.
Accidents happen, but this incident, Saunders said, has made him more safety conscious.
“It makes me not want to be stupid and think I’m invincible,” Saunders said. “I have a wife and kids that I need to be around for, for a long time. Something like that certainly makes you think twice about jumping off a rock, or not wearing a helmet. It’s just not worth it.”
Ryan Ballengee is a Yahoo Sports contributor. Find him on Facebook and Twitter.
