Professional golfer Gary Woodland broke down in tears Sunday as he achieved his first major PGA Tour victory since undergoing brain surgery to remove a benign tumor—a procedure that left him suffering from PTSD.
Woodland, 41, was crowed the winner of the Houston Open on March 29, his first prominent tournament win since 2019, when he beat out Brooks Koepka, then ranked the No. 1 golfer in the world, to claim the U.S. Open title at Pebble Beach in California.
While the Texas-based competition was nowhere near as prominent as the Open, the victory was perhaps all the more meaningful to Woodland, who not only underwent surgery to remove a benign brain tumor in September 2023, but has since revealed the condition left him suffering from anxiety and post-traumatic stress disorder.
Following his win at Houston’s Memorial Park, Woodland was quick to credit his wife, Gabby Granado, with helping him to return to the sport he loves so dearly, telling reporters at a press conference immediately after the tournament that his spouse has had to weather more than her fair share of struggles as a result of his condition—and his career.
“My family, I can’t say enough. I’ve said it before, this has been hard on me, but what this has
been on my family and my wife, and she’s been the rock through this whole thing,” he said. “I couldn’t
do this without her and I wouldn’t be here without her.”
He noted that his wife has been steadfast in her commitment to helping him get back to the top of his game, explaining that—while he leaves their home and travels around the world for tournaments or training, Gabby has remained with their children, caring for them so that he can pursue his dreams.
“We’ve got three kids at home, too. She’s raising them and trying to take care of me,” he said. “I’m on the West Coast to start the year for four weeks in a row and she knows, she can tell I was in a dark place and she’s five hours away raising kids.
“So she runs the ship. If she goes down, the whole ship goes down, there’s no doubt about that. I wouldn’t be where I am before all this without her and I’m definitely not sitting here today without her.”
He added: “This has been hard on me. It’s been a lot harder on her.”
The tournament victory comes just two weeks after Woodland opened up for the first time about his struggles with PTSD in an emotional interview with the Golf Channel during which he admitted that he has often felt like he is “dying inside.”
“I appreciate that love and support. But inside, I feel like I’m dying, and I feel like I’m living a lie,” he shared. “I want to live my dreams and be successful out here. But I want to help people, too. I realize now I’ve got to help myself first.”
Woodland explained that he was first diagnosed with PTSD about a year prior—less than 12 months after he underwent his brain surgery—revealing that his condition triggered anxiety and hyper-awareness, which mean that loud noises and sudden movements can cause him significant trauma.
He admitted that doctors have suggested he step away from the sport altogether to avoid the kinds of stressful environments that might trigger an episode, but said that he had never really considered quitting golf and is instead figuring out ways to work around his PTSD while on the course.
“This is my dream,” he said. “I have a lot of fight in me and I’m not going to let this thing win. But it’s been hard.
“In an ideal world I’m probably not playing, but in an ideal world I don’t have this. This is my dream.”
Woodland explained that the most important step in his journey has been learning to “help myself first,” revealing that he’s still figuring out the best ways to balance his condition with his professional golf career—a process that his spouse has played an integral role in.
The professional golfer and his wife tied the knot in 2016, less than two years after he revealed that the couple was engaged.
A year after they wed, the couple welcomed their first child, son Jaxson—before announcing in 2019 that Gabby had given birth to twin daughters, Maddox and Lennox.
However, in 2023, after Woodland was diagnosed with a brain lesion that doctors later determined would require surgery, Gabby admitted that their whole life was turned upside down, revealing in an episode of the Netflix series “Full Swing”: “It literally came out of nowhere. Our life was completely changed.”
Recalling the moment that her husband learned of his diagnosis, she revealed to Essentially Sports: “I just remember him going back in the bedroom to write it and him just coming out and he was just bawling.”
Following his surgery, Woodland spent time recovering at the family’s Florida home, which they purchased for $4.25 million in 2016, according to property records.
Located in Delray Beach, FL, just a few blocks from the ocean, the property features four bedrooms and 4.5 bathrooms, while offering more than 5,400 square feet of living space.
The home features a sizable pool in the tree-lined backyard and, perhaps most importantly for Woodland, is just a 25-minute drive from his primary training course at the Pine Tree Golf Club.
However, when it comes to his favorite place to train, Woodland might well name his other abode in his home state of Kansas, which he had custom built after buying a 0.73-acre plot of land in Lawrence in September 2018.
The mansion that now sits on that parcel, which had previously been listed for just $165,000, offers an array of sport-centric amenities, including a putting green in the backyard, a sports court, and a custom golf simulator that sits in its own structure on the grounds of the primary residence.
According to a video posted by Celebrity Greens—the company behind the creation of Woodland’s green and simulator setup—the “private golf complex” spreads across 13,000 square feet, providing ample space for Woodland to hone his skills.
Although the family uses their Florida home as their primary residence, they regularly visit the Kansas property, which they use mostly as a summer escape, where the golfer can return to his nearby hometown and spend time with family during the off season.
Speaking to business solutions firm Elliott Davis after his U.S. Open win in 2019, Woodland explained how he tries to separate his career from his life at home, revealing how his priorities changed as soon as he became a father.
“My whole life I’ve wanted to be the best athlete in the world,” he said. “I didn’t know what sport that was going to be. When I focused on golf in college and transferred to [the University of] Kansas, I wanted to be the best player in the world. I lived and breathed it.
“Now, with kids, it puts some perspective there. I still want it bad and will work for it, but when I come home, I’m able to disconnect. If I play bad, I’m able to see my son and it puts me in a better spot. A couple of years ago, I would have dwelled on it and [felt like] life was over. I have a bigger purpose now.”