Jason Bohn will enjoy his first piece of red meat in almost two months Sunday to celebrate his 43rd birthday.
Perhaps a small piece of rib-eye cooked on his Big Green Egg. Or maybe something special from his favorite restaurant, Hals on Old Ivy.
Bohn will celebrate many things.
First, he’s alive.
On Feb. 26, after Bohn shot a 72 to make the cut at the Honda Classic, he suffered a major heart attack. Though he had been dealing with the flu and bronchitis in the weeks before the attack, he said he had no inkling of what was coming. The symptoms started after his round. The Acworth resident went to see medical staff at the course. They sent him to a nearby hospital in Palm Beach Gardens, Fla. They diagnosed the situation and inserted a stent on Saturday.
Second, after Bohn’s “situation” — a 99 percent blockage in the left anterior descending artery, a location nicknamed “the widowmaker” — his 72-year-old mother, Carol, decided she needed to undergo a heart exam. She was cleared, but advised to undergo a stress test a few days later. As she underwent that test April 14, she was told that she needed to check into the hospital. Now.
Four days later she underwent triple-bypass surgery. Bohn said she is doing fine.
“Lot of friends and family are getting checked out,” he said. “Lot of my friends locally; people will come up to me at my kids baseball game. ‘I’m going to get checked out.’
“It’s the whole awareness thing: I would have never said that I was a good candidate to have a heart attack.”
Now, Bohn has a new outlook on lots of things. Though he and his swing coach say he could have died had the heart attack dropped him while on the course, there was no 180-degree turn in his approach to life. One wasn’t needed.
“He’s got great faith. Always had a good attitude,” said Mike Perpich, Bohn’s coach since March 2012. “He’s always treated people great. His act was already cleaned up.”
Still, Bohn said he is trying with more earnestness and regularity to tell his family members that he loves them whenever they talk. He knows that he may one day fall back into old routines and forget, but for now he is doing more.
He also tries not to let things that he can’t control cause him stress. Lost bags. Missing clubs. Late flights. The headaches for professionals and professional athletes. Instead of joking about yelling, Bohn said he’s going to take a deep breath, exhale and keep his cool.
Other things aren’t as normal. For starters, he enjoys his rehab. He is nearing the end of his three-times-a week, hour-long sessions at Wellstar Paulding Hospital. For 45 minutes he will exercise while his heart is monitored. The last 15 minutes are dedicated to nutrition, the heart and medicine. He started post-heart attack with 12 pills, is down to eight and likely will take at least four for the rest of his life.
When he finishes his 36th and final treatment he will receive a white T-shirt with the words “I completed cardio rehab.” Call it a polyester blend badge of courage.
“When you’ve gone through it and gone through all those rehabs you want that T-shirt,” he said.
He has bonded with the other rehab patients, even though he said he is the youngest in his group.
The rehab has given him confidence to eat the occasional bit of steak or, someday soon, his other favorite, pepperoni and mushroom pizza, because he has so learned so much about his body and his heart. Some people can eat all the “bad” foods they want and their bodies can process it. Others can eat all the “good” foods and their bodies can’t process those as well. Bohn was one to mix the good with the bad, and now, with his education, knows that he can still enjoy what he likes without worrying too much about repercussions.
“When you are out and walk up a flight of stairs and your heart is going, you won’t worry about having another heart attack,” he said.
Bohn’s golf hasn’t changed much. He practiced for three hours with Perpich at TPC Sugarloaf earlier this week and plans to play the next three weeks, which is about the most he would play before the heart attack. That was part of the game plan put together after the heart attack.
His game was better than at any time in his career before the Honda Classic. The Alabama alum had already this season finished second twice, third once and banked $1.2 million in nine events. After languishing in the 100s of the World Golf Ranking most of the past PGA Tour season, he ended at a career-high No. 61. He’s No. 74 now and trying catch back up.
Perpich said he’s close. Bohn said he isn’t as quick as he was before the “situation,” but it’s coming back quickly. Bohn finished tied for 69th last week at the RBC Heritage at Harbour Town. Perpich measured Bohn’s swing speed on during their practice session, and it was faster than it was before the heart attack.
"Golf is still a big part of my life," said Bohn, a two-time winner on the PGA Tour. "It's serious because it makes me happy. I enjoy doing what I love to do. Again, it's a job and it can be frustrating like any job. I enjoy some of the simple frustrations."
Bohn hopes to use golf to raise awareness about heart disease in ways other than just being a living example. He is working to start a foundation and plans to host a golf event in metro Atlanta. He doesn’t know when.
The foundation’s message will be simple.
“Go get checked out,” he said.
