Golfing with an Ileostomy: Tips for Adjusting Your Game

Hi,

I am very new to the group and this journey. I had emergency surgery in May of 2024, waking up to an upper right ileostomy. Due to complications, I ended up missing out on the golf season last year as well as enjoying walking/hiking with my hubby and our new pup. I am supposed to be having a stoma reversal sometime this year. 🤞

Now back to golf, as I am planning on starting the golf season under the premise that I will not be having the surgery anytime soon, I am looking for some pointers.

For those who golf with an ileostomy, did you have to change your golf swing at all to accommodate the stoma to ensure that it is not irritated?

I normally wear golf dresses when I golf, but at the beginning and end of the golf season, I may have to wear pants. Is it best to wear golf pants that have a high waist that is elastic? I do have women's ostomy underwear that have a pouch/pocket on the inside that helps with holding the bag up so that it does not pull down. I also wear an ostomy belt, that my ostomy nurse recommended I wear full-time.

I love to walk when I golf. Do I need to switch to riding a golf cart so as not to irritate the stoma?

Any tips?

Take care,

Tammy

Hi Tammy,

Greetings from New Zealand.

While I know absolutely nothing about golf, I cannot advise you on that.
I have had my ileostomy for (my husband says I got it about 28 years ago), and to be honest, I no longer feel comfortable wearing dresses.... But I live on a small farm, we have pets, and I just find it easier to wear elastic waist pants or jeans. I cannot bear to wear anything too tight. And having lost 40 kg in the last 2 years (without trying), I'm now having to go look for some new jeans/pants and shirts.
As long as you make sure that you don't carry too heavy things; I imagine a golf bag would be too heavy for you to carry perhaps. And you don't do any abdominal exercises which could leave you at risk of getting a hernia, you'd probably be fine walking.
However, you'd best run that past your doctor and stoma nurse.
Learning where all the toilets are wherever I go is rather important, especially since I have rapid transit, and need to wear a high output bag. I never go anywhere without my backpack, which I have a change of clothing in, my travel bag in case I need to change my bag, and extra plastic bags to put soiled clothing in.
I never leave home without having electrolyte drinks with me, as especially in summer, if you have an ileostomy, you have to be very careful about becoming dehydrated....

I am sure many others can give you much better advice than I can.

But all the best,

Gracie

Hello,

It's good that you wear a support belt all the time. Me too.

I would be careful doing any drives off the tee. It's really easy to develop a parastomal hernia, even with the belt on. Don't lift any golf bags. That's what husbands are for.

Strike a balance between walking and riding the cart. You don't want to tire yourself out and become dehydrated or suffer a fall. Both happened to me. No fun.

Sip electrolyte beverages. Powder mixed into water or a sports-type drink. Don't chug. Your body needs time to absorb; drink too much too fast and you'll pee it right out.

Have fun.

Thank you so much for all your tips.

I am finding wearing jeans and even some elastic waist pants uncomfortable due to where the waistband sits in relation to where my stoma is. Even with high waisted pants I find the seams sit right over my stoma irritating it. If I do have to wear jeans I use an elastic to loop between the button and button hole so that I can have the waistband looser. 

My golf dresses are nice and loose so I am actually looking forward to winter ending so I can wear something comfortable outside the house.

Thank you for the tips, especially regarding the electrolytes. I normally take my homemade fruit/veggie juice drinks, filtered water, coffee or iced herbal teas on the course with me. I will have to remember to add the electrolyte powder to my water. 

Also, thank you for the warning about teeing off, I do tend to over-swing sometimes when on the tee box, especially after a dreaded three putt. I have already decided to move up a tee on some of the courses I play so as not to over-swing when trying to clear a gully or go over a large water hazard.

After missing the golf season last year I am looking forward to getting out this year, even if I do have to cut back on the number of rounds per week until after my stoma reversal surgery.

Enjoy the great outdoors,

Words of Encouragement from Ostomy Advocates I Hollister

Hi Pollie - one of the things I would start to work on now is your core by using a series of exercises. Regaining some flexibility and some strength in this area is crucial to your swing. As for clothing, my Mother who played 150+ rounds per year with an ileostomy, swore by culottes. I have found with a urostomy that I now play to 15 handicap instead of a 7 and have become less fluid and more 'handsy' but you can't beat the feeling of playing on the right side of the grass 😀 Best, Bryce 

Ileostomy: I was lucky my pouch is on my right side; I play left-handed. I play at least twice a week. Here is what I have learned: first, I would wear a hernia belt, keeping it close to the skin. The surgery will slow down your swing, which I found to be a plus. As for dress, I wear pants or shorts, just buy them larger than normal and look for a little elastic. In addition, I have found banded bottom shirts and light summer vests helpful. From time to time, I will wear my shirt tails out. If it's cool, I love an oversized sweatshirt. I always ride as I never know when I may need a restroom. Before every round, I eat a tablespoon of peanut butter and nibble on Cheerios; these will slow down the flow. I have played 9 holes with only one stop. I carry four flushable and biodegradable doggie bags. I use them standing up as I am 6' 6" tall and my pouch will not reach the toilet. In my cart, I have a large plastic coffee can with a top and liner; if needed, I can use the doggie bag and deposit it in the can and close it. It takes minutes and no one knows what I am doing; it looks like I'm washing my balls (golf!). Guess that's about it; play well. Terry

Hi Bryce,

Thank you for the tip about the core exercises. Because of my rough recovery from the initial surgery, I was not given an exercise regime by the ostomy nurses. I did, however, stumble across a website where the title of the article was "12 Safe Exercises for Stoma Patients (Approved by Specialists)." It is from July 9, 2021, written by Dr. Sara Michela Luadli.

I have started these exercises, and once I have my colonoscopy on March 3rd, 2025, I plan on making an appointment with the ostomy nurse to get some pointers on how to protect my stoma while golfing and have them review the exercises I am doing to see if I need to modify them or add additional exercises.

I am hoping that after the colonoscopy, my surgeon will be able to do the stoma reversal surgery before the golf season starts here in Calgary. I am also planning on going to the indoor driving range this month to start working on my short game with some chipping and putting.

Before my emergency surgery, I was an 18 handicap, but with missing a year now, I am not going to worry too much about my handicap and just enjoy being out on the course again. I will continue tracking my handicap more to see what part of the game I need to work on after I have the surgery and am fully healed. My hubby also reiterated today that I will be using a power cart until after I am fully healed.

Calgary's golf season likely will not start until mid-April, and the ladies' league I am in will start in May. I have already advised my golfing buddies that I will be moving forward on the tee boxes to avoid some of the long carries over gullies and water hazards so I do not over-swing.

Here is the link to the exercises I am now doing:

https://farmoderm.it/en/exercises-for-stoma-patients/

Have a wonderful golf season,

Tammy

Thank you for the tips, I am planning on wearing golf dresses as they are loose and will definitely talk with my ostomy nurse regarding a hernia belt. My ileostomy is on my right side and I am a right handed golfer so I am already suspecting I need to watch my downswing so that I am not coming in to close to my body with my right elbow.

Have a wonderful golf season,

Hi, I'm an 11 handicap golfer and have had both an ileostomy and a colostomy (currently recovering from having my colostomy bag refitted after a horrendous 10 months after having it reversed). I had no issues playing golf or walking. Speak to your stoma nurse and ask about the support belts; these will help with your lack of core strength and help with hernia prevention. In terms of changing your swing, this isn't required, but you may need to allow yourself time to adjust to swinging with a stoma.

Hope this helps. Good luck!

Pollie,

I'm 5 years post-ileo surgery and have been playing golf from 3 months post-op. I wear a pouch belt to secure my bag. I've tried swinging without one and find that it may sway with the swing and hit my hands. I've had the bag fall off twice during my time with it. Not a good scene. Having a belt that secures the bag horizontally or diagonally is a must for me. As for clothing, I wear patterned shirts to hide the bulge. A solid color shirt shows an imprint of the bag fairly easily, especially if I'm tucking in a shirt.

I also carry a supply kit in my bag. Everything I'll need for a full replacement. I've only needed to use it once. I had a filling bag that I couldn't dump when I needed. The full bag was placed in a double Ziploc bag and a new bag attached in less than a minute. Problem solved. Plan for the worst and you'll be ready to deal with it.

Hit them straight!

Best of health,

SharkFan

Hi Pollie.

I am an avid golfer and had a colostomy a year ago. I didn't do any golfing until August, 6 months after. I started with just going to the driving range for about a month and only a small bucket. Your body needs time to adjust to the motion.

Then, I started playing rounds... but only 9 holes. I walk a lot, but we have a cart that carries the bags. Even a pull cart will put stress on your stoma, and if the course is hilly, you will be putting extra stress in that area. I would definitely start by riding, and then walking one hole, riding the next, until you can walk the whole round.

I am going to try expanding to 10, 11, and 12 holes this spring. Then, we will see. My rotation of how I follow through has changed a lot, as my stoma is on the left side and affects the direction of my follow through. You might experience that on your backswing. Good luck and keep playing!

I never stopped golfing with my ileostomy except the obvious couple of months recuperating. I also golfed through my chemo...now, that was hard!!! I just did my thing! A lot of good advice here. I never wore any belt...just me. Enjoy the golf season. It is fun.