PHOTO BY GARRICK DIXON
Shaw Grigsby went under the knife multiple times during his 40 years on tour . He ’ s had surgeries performed on his back , shoulders , knees , hips and thumbs .
THE WALKING WOUNDED A long touring career can come at a physical cost
Mark Davis and other veteran anglers explain why playing through — and preventing — pain is just as important in bass fishing as any other sport .
By Mitchell Forde
The first time Mark Davis arrived at the hospital for surgery , his doctors tried to talk him out of it .
It wasn ’ t that Davis didn ’ t need the procedures . The pain emanating from the Bass Pro Tour veteran ’ s right shoulder and left elbow had gotten so bad that he couldn ’ t wield either casting or spinning gear without discomfort . The problem was Davis attempted to get both limbs repaired at the same time . This being the mid-1990s , before medical records were digitized , the two separate specialists he had seen about each ailment didn ’ t realize until they arrived at the operating room that
Davis had actually booked both for the same day .
The doctors warned Davis that , if he went through with his plan , he ’ d be without use of both arms for weeks while he recovered . They were right , by the way . Davis remembers feeling “ completely helpless ” afterward , relying on his wife , Tilly , for everything , even using the restroom .
“ I was an invalid , pretty much ,” he said . “ I remember when I woke up , they had me wrapped up like a mummy in a strait jacket . I didn ’ t have use of either arm .”
But Davis , at the time less than a third of the way into his Hall of Fame career , felt like he didn ’ t have a choice . If he didn ’ t address both injuries early in the offseason , he might have to miss the start of the following tournament year , and he couldn ’ t afford to do so .
“( The doctors ) both walked in and said , ‘ Hey , we don ’ t need to do this ,” he recalled . “ I said , ‘ Yeah we do . I don ’ t have any choice . We ’ ve got to get it done , and I ’ ll just suffer through it . I ’ ve got to get it done and get rehabilitated and get back going before the season cranks up again .’”
Fast forward more than 20 years , and Davis has put together one of the most decorated careers in tournament bass fishing history . In his 37 seasons on tour , he ’ s notched six wins , including a victory at the 1995 Bassmaster Classic , and three Angler of the Year titles . But to get there , he ’ s had to persevere through an equally impressive litany of injuries . Since those first surgeries on his right shoulder and left elbow , Davis , who will turn 60 around the time this issue arrives in readers ’ mailboxes , has undergone a second surgery on his right shoulder , another on his left shoulder , a hip replacement and a three-level fusion in his neck .
Davis is proof that a long angling career comes with a physical cost — and that preventing , toughing out and treating injuries is just as much a part of bass fishing as any other sport .
30 MAJORLEAGUEFISHING . COM | OCTOBER-NOVEMBER 2023