Fred Funk has been playing professional golf for a long time — a quarter-century and counting. When you figure the weekly tournaments, pro-ams, practice rounds, exhibitions and range time, that’s a lot of golf swings. That’s millions of golf swings. The same motion, over and over and over again.

The guy’s got a right to be sore now and then.

The longtime PGA Tour pro and 2005 Players Championship winner is the first to admit he’s had his share of aches and pains over the years, but despite repeated efforts to repair his ailments, Funk was getting nowhere. Then he met Bob Donatelli, creator of the Strengthen Your Game program.

“The biggest thing with Bob, you have to buy into his system, and it becomes a good marriage,” Funk says. “I had a good experience with him here to get over a shoulder injury. When I was working with Bob, it was the dedication we both had to each other, and working hard for 13 days in a row, and learning his program. That was the best thing, instead of [using] a fly-by-night system.”

While not fly-by-night, Strengthen Your Game has nearly been an overnight success. The golf fitness program was designed by sports therapy guru Donatelli three years ago and is backed by the experts at Stryker Physiotherapy Associates. It’s also found believers on the PGA, LPGA and Champions Tours, with everyone from Funk to Jim Furyk and Natalie Gulbis reaping its rewards. The program now has 70 locations around the country, including 15 locations in the Midwest.

So when Funk complained of shoulder pain, the guru knew what to do: find Funk’s weaknesses. After the programís extensive physical evaluation, Funk said he was surprised by the results.

“I knew I was going to be weak in certain areas,” he says. “But I was surprised at how weak I was. My hip strength was not good at all. My shoulder strength was a little better than I thought itíd be when we started, and it became really good when I left.”

After the core, which was discussed last issue (read it online at www.glgmagazine.com), the shoulder area is a critical part of the swing. By building the muscles around the shoulder area, golfers can see a marked improvement in their power, says Mitch Shaver, the Group Director of Stryker Physiotherapy Associates in Lake Orion, Michigan.

“We’re probably not going to work on your biceps to help your swing,” Shaver laughs, “but we might work on your chest, lats and rotator cuff muscles, which will increase your power in your swing.”

Of course, the real strength of Strengthen Your Game comes from being a completely tailor-made fitness regime specific to each individual. Some people may need to work on the flexibility in their shoulder, while for others, it could be a repetitive-stress injury in their scapula.

“It’s a completely different program from one individual to the next,” Shaver explains. “We can treat the young, male athlete and the middle-aged average golfer. Different body types, different age groups. We treat them all.

“The whole premise of the Strengthen Your Game program is to tailor-make a program to increase power and clubhead speed.”

As Funk found out, it doesn’t take long to see results. And you certainly don’t have to be a Tour player to reap the rewards of the program either.

“I think the average American is not in good physical condition. Then you throw the golf swing at them, and they’re just not efficient at all,” Funk says. “It’s hard enough to hit a golf ball when it’s all you do. When you’re a professional, it’s still a hard game. If you’re not, it’s that much harder. So I think this can absolutely benefit everybody. It doesn’t take that long; it’s a matter of doing the right things and doing them the right way.”

For more information, and to find a Strengthen Your Game location near you, visit www.strengthenyourgame.com.