by Marino | MyGolfSwing.net | February 2026
Disclosure: This article contains affiliate links to products I purchased with my own money. If you buy through these links, I may earn a small commission at no extra cost to you. I only recommend products I personally use and believe in. My opinions are entirely my own.
When plantar fasciitis golf training and tournament play all collide at the same time, you learn fast what matters and what doesn’t.
Two weeks ago I woke up, put my feet on the floor, and felt like I was stepping on a nail. Right on the heel. If you know, you know. That first step in the morning when your heel screams at you and you already know what it is before you even Google it.
Plantar fasciitis.
For a 56-year-old competitive golfer in the middle of swing speed training and SCGA tournament season, this was the last thing I needed. The Stack System puts real force through your feet. Walking 18 holes is roughly 10,000 steps on hard ground. And I had my 2026 season opener at Palm Valley CC coming up in days.
Here is what it has actually been like, what I have changed, what I have refused to change, and what is helping me push through it.
In my next SCGA event at Desert Falls, I took a cart and the heel held up — here’s the full recap.
What Plantar Fasciitis Actually Is
The plantar fascia is a thick band of tissue that runs along the bottom of your foot from your heel to your toes. It acts like a bowstring supporting the arch. When it gets inflamed or develops micro-tears, you get that stabbing heel pain, especially first thing in the morning or after sitting for a while.
It is incredibly common in people over 40, particularly if you are active and spend time on your feet. Tight calves, overtraining, worn-out shoes, and repetitive impact all contribute. For anyone dealing with plantar fasciitis golf is where it really shows up, the push-off during the downswing loads the lead foot hard, and that repeated stress adds up. My pain is concentrated right on the heel, which is the most common spot. That is where the fascia attaches to the heel bone and where the most tension builds up. Understanding the mechanics helps, but when plantar fasciitis golf performance and daily life are all affected at once.
How It Is Actually Affecting My Life
I am going to be real here because most plantar fasciitis golf articles skip the part that actually matters because I think most articles about injuries gloss over the part that actually matters. This is not just a physical thing. It changes your decisions. It gets in your head.
I have turned down golf with my buddies. That is the part that bothers me the most. When your friends call and ask if you want to play and you say no because your heel hurts, that is a different kind of frustration. It is not like skipping a practice session where you are working on something alone. It is social. It is the reason most of us play this game in the first place. But when you are dealing with real pain on every step, the idea of walking 18 holes for fun just does not feel worth it when you know you have tournament rounds you need to save your feet for.
That is the trade-off nobody warns you about. You start rationing your rounds. You start thinking about which golf matters more. And casual rounds with friends end up being the first thing you cut.
What I Refused to Change
Some people will read this and think I am being stubborn. Maybe I am. But there are parts of my routine that I am not willing to back off on, even with the pain.
Stack System training: same intensity, same swings. I am still doing the full protocol with the same aggressive swings. At 107 mph and chasing 115, I am not about to start babying my swing because my heel hurts. The Stack System works because you push maximum effort. You are training your body to generate force at the edge of what it can do. If I start holding back, I am not training anymore. I am just swinging sticks.
Does it hurt? Yes. Every session. But with plantar fasciitis golf does not stop — you just learn to manage it.The ground force goes straight through my feet and my heel lets me know about it. But I push through it because this is the one thing I cannot afford to lose momentum on. Speed gains at 56 do not come easy. If I take weeks off the Stack System, I am not just pausing. I am sliding backward. And I have worked too hard to go from 89 to 107 to give any of that back.
Hot yoga: still going, still pushing. Eleven years of hot yoga practice and I am not about to let plantar fasciitis break that streak. But I will say this: the pain shows up in places you do not expect. Warrior 2 has become my nemesis right now. If you practice yoga, you know Warrior 2 is all about grounding through your feet. You dig your heel into the mat to create that strong foundation. That is literally the pose. And right now, every time I sink into it and press my heel down, the pain is sharp and immediate.
I do not skip it though. I modify my weight distribution slightly and keep going. The overall benefits of hot yoga for this injury are too significant to stop. The heat loosens everything. The calf stretches and downward dog variations directly target the tissue that feeds into the plantar fascia. It is doing double duty as both my mobility practice and my rehab. But Warrior 2 specifically has become a real test of how much I am willing to tolerate.
What I Did Change
I am not completely reckless about this. There are places where I have made smart adjustments to protect my feet while still competing.
I took a cart at Palm Valley. This was a big deal for me. I normally walk every round. I have an MGI electric golf cart that I use in tournaments and I genuinely prefer walking. There is a rhythm to walking the course that puts me in a better headspace between shots. But for the Palm Valley tournament, I made the call to take a riding cart. It was included with the green fees, and I knew that 18 holes of walking on an inflamed heel could wreck me for weeks after.
It was the right call. I shot 78 and finished 7th out of 32 players. My feet were sore but not destroyed. If I had walked that round, I am not sure I would have been able to train the following week. Sometimes the smart play is not the one you want to make.
Turning down casual rounds. Like I said above, this is the hardest one. But right now with plantar fasciitis golf with friends is a luxury I cannot afford until this heals, and I am spending it on tournament rounds and training sessions. Casual golf with friends is a luxury I cannot afford until this heals. It is temporary. But it still stings.
Plantar Fasciitis Golf Gear That Is Helping Me Push Through
I went on Amazon and bought five things that have collectively made this manageable. None of them are a cure. But together they are the reason I can still train, still compete, and still do yoga without this thing spiraling into something worse.
Foot massage roller. This has become part of my nightly routine. I roll my foot over it for 10-15 minutes while watching TV. It works the tension out of the fascia and the surrounding muscles in the arch. The relief is noticeable the next morning. If I skip a night, I feel it. That tells me it is doing something real.
Foot ice pack wrap. This wraps right around the heel and arch, which is exactly where my pain is concentrated. Way more targeted than a bag of ice. I use it after Stack sessions and after rounds. Twenty minutes with this on and the inflammation calms down significantly. The fact that it stays in place and I can walk around the house while icing is a game changer. After pushing hard through a training session, this is the first thing I reach for.
Compression sock. I wear this around the house and sometimes to bed. The compression supports the arch and keeps gentle pressure on the fascia so it does not tighten up as aggressively overnight. I noticed the morning pain started to decrease after a few days of consistent use. It is not a cure, but it takes the edge off that brutal first step and I think it is speeding up recovery between training days.
Calf stretcher. This one surprised me with how effective it is. Tight calves are one of the biggest contributors to plantar fasciitis because the calf muscles connect to the Achilles tendon, which connects to the plantar fascia. Everything is linked. I use the calf stretcher first thing in the morning before I even take that first step, and again before Stack sessions. It has made the single biggest difference in reducing the morning heel pain. Between this and eleven years of hot yoga working on the same muscle groups, my calves are getting attention from both ends.
Powerstep insoles. I swapped these into my golf shoes immediately. The arch support is noticeably better than what came stock, and the heel cushioning specifically addresses where my pain is. This was the first thing I bought and I would say it made the most immediate difference on the course. When I took the cart at Palm Valley, I still had to walk from cart to ball and stand over every shot. The Powerstep insoles made those moments bearable. If you do nothing else for your plantar fasciitis golf insoles are the fastest fix — upgrade them.
The Mental Side
Here is what nobody talks about. When you are 56 and chasing a specific number, every interruption feels like a threat. I have been on this trajectory from 89 to 107 mph with my sights on 115, and suddenly plantar fasciitis golf training and competing all feel uncertain.
I am not slowing down. But I am being strategic about where I spend my energy. That means pushing through pain in the Stack sessions because those gains are non-negotiable. It means taking a cart when the smart play is to save my feet for the shots that matter. And it means telling my buddies I will catch them next time, even though it kills me to say it.
There is a difference between being tough and being stupid. I am trying to walk that line every day right now. The competitive mindset says push through everything. The 56-year-old body says pick your battles. Finding the balance between those two voices is honestly the hardest part of this whole thing.
What Is Next
I have a podiatrist appointment scheduled for March 2nd. Between now and then, I am staying consistent with the routine that is working: the massage roller and ice pack wrap at night, compression sock throughout the day, calf stretcher morning and pre-training, Powerstep insoles in my golf shoes, and hot yoga multiple times a week. Stack System training continues at full intensity.
If the podiatrist recommends custom orthotics, shockwave therapy, or something more targeted, I will write a follow-up with what that process looks like and whether it helps. This is a real-time journey and I am documenting all of it.
I have another SCGA event coming up and I plan to compete. Whether I walk or ride will depend on how the heel feels that week. The competitive schedule does not stop. I just have to be smart about how I get through it.
If you are dealing with plantar fasciitis golf should not have to stop completely, especially if you are over 50 and trying to keep up a serious training program, know that you are not alone. It is manageable. It is frustrating. And it will test your patience more than your pain tolerance. But you do not have to stop everything. You just have to figure out what you can push through and what you need to protect. For me, that answer changes every day.
Gear Mentioned in This Article:
- Foot Massage Roller
- Foot Ice Pack Wrap
- Compression Sock
- Calf Stretcher
- Powerstep Insoles
- MGI Electric Golf Cart
Note: Links above are affiliate links. I bought every item with my own money and only recommend what I actually use.
Living with plantar fasciitis golf has become a daily negotiation — but it is one I am winning.
Have questions or going through something similar? I would love to hear what has worked for you.
Marino@MyGolfSwing.net