Davis Love III returns to Champions following open-heart surgery

World Golf Hall of Fame member Davis Love III shot a 3-over 75 Friday at the PGA Tour Champions' Mitsubishi Classic in Duluth, Ga., finishing the first round 13 strokes off the lead.

But numbers didn't particularly matter to Love on this day.

The 61-year-old teed off at TPC Sugarloaf less than three months after undergoing open-heart surgery to repair a leaky valve.

After playing in only three events in 2024 -- his last being the Constellation Furyk & Friends in October -- Love decided it was time to undergo a procedure that had been in the works for years.

Speaking with Golfweek earlier this year, Love recounted how a routine doctor's visit resulted in a potentially life-saving diagnosis 10 years ago.

While Love was undergoing a routine physical, his doctor detected a heart murmur and referred the 1997 PGA Championship winner to a cardiologist. That is when the leaky valve was discovered.

"I had no symptoms, I never felt bad. I never had anything other than a little bit of high blood pressure," Love told the outlet Thursday.

"So I could have walked right into a tragedy and they prevented that, so I feel very blessed. Now they're saying I've got 10 or 15 years on this valve and then I can get a new one. I'm going to get the most I can out of this one and hopefully get a retread down the road some time."

Though the procedure was in January, Love had to wait until spring to start hitting golf balls while the ribs that were cracked for the procedure healed.

"I'm not very patient at all," Love said. "They told me I could start putting in March and my daughter told me, 'Well, you're scooping horse stalls already, I think that's harder than putting. Why don't you go putt?' I literally on the way home from the hospital stopped in the gym at Sea Island with Randy Myers. We didn't really do anything except walk around in circles, but it started the day I got home from surgery to let's do something."

As for his on-course goals, Love still has quite a bit to play for.

He is still seeking his first win on the PGA Champions Tour. Friday marked his 53rd start on the tour. He also continues to have his sights on the PGA Tour record for career starts.

He currently sits on 790 career starts, nine behind second-place Jay Haas and 13 behind Mark Brooks' record of 803.

--Field Level Media