Golfer's elbow: a staged exercise plan for pain on the inside of the elbow
Pain and tenderness on the inside of the elbow, where the muscles that bend the wrist and fingers and turn the palm down attach to the bony bump. It hurts to grip, lift heavier things and bend the wrist, and your grip can feel weak. It shouldn't cause lasting damage, and it doesn't lead to arthritis.
Most cases aren't from golf. It has been studied far less than tennis elbow, so the plan below borrows from tennis elbow research. That is reasonable, but not proven, and this page says where.
Exercise is for pain that has been checked or is clearly mild and settling.
Get urgent medical help if
Go to A&E or call 999 if you've injured your arm and it is numb, tingling or has pins and needles; a bone is sticking out or a bad cut is bleeding heavily; or the arm or elbow has changed colour or shape, or is at an odd angle. Don't drive yourself.
Urgent treatment centre or A&E: severe pain in your arm and it's difficult to move, or you've injured your arm and heard a snap. Tingling or numbness that comes on suddenly or after an injury belongs here too.
Same day (urgent GP appointment or NHS 111): a swollen elbow with a very high temperature, or you feel hot, cold or shivery; or sudden severe pain in one joint with swelling, a change of colour and difficulty moving it. It could be an infection in the joint or the bursa, or gout.
Same day (NHS 111): a pop or snap and sudden pain during an effort, which could be a torn tendon. At the front of the elbow, with bruising and a bulge in the upper arm, don't wait for it to settle: a torn biceps tendon is best repaired within the first 2 to 3 weeks.
Same day (NHS 111): after a fall or knock you can't fully straighten the elbow, or the injured arm is very painful, very swollen or bruised, or stiff and hard to move. In a large study, about half of people who couldn't fully straighten the elbow after an injury had a fracture.
Call 999: arm pain that comes on suddenly with pressure, heaviness, tightness or squeezing across your chest, especially with shortness of breath, sweating or feeling sick. It could be a heart attack.
See a doctor or physiotherapist if
Pins and needles that keep coming back or are constant, numbness in the ring and little fingers that doesn't go, a weak or clumsy hand, or visible wasting between the thumb and index finger. Ask about referral: one NHS referral guide treats permanent numbness or wasting as urgent.
Inner-elbow pain when you throw, or a feeling that the elbow gives way, especially in a young thrower.
Elbow or arm pain that hasn't gone after a few weeks of looking after it yourself (for tennis elbow, the NHS says after at least 2 weeks of self-care). In many areas you can refer yourself to NHS physiotherapy.
Golfer's elbow that isn't improving after a few months of good care (editorial: a UK care pathway suggests referral for tennis elbow that hasn't improved after 12 to 24 weeks, and golfer's elbow is managed the same way).
Understand it
What it is, and who gets itEmerging evidence
It is a tendinopathy where the muscles that bend the wrist and turn the forearm attach on the inner elbow, with pain when you resist bending the wrist or turning the palm down. A clinical review describes it as generally harder to manage than tennis elbow.
About 0.4% of adults aged 30 to 64 have it at any one time (against 1.3% for tennis elbow), most often at 45 to 54; it is linked with smoking, obesity, repetitive movements and forceful activities. Most cases are in people doing repetitive, forceful gripping and manual work, not golfers. It is up to 6 times less common than tennis elbow.
Golfer's elbow, the ulnar nerve or the ligament?Emerging evidence
A review warns that problems with the ulnar nerve, and less often with the ligament on the inside of the elbow (the ulnar collateral ligament), need ruling out first. Some clues:
An ache over the inner bump, worse gripping and curling the wrist, with no tingling: golfer's elbow.
Tingling or numbness in the ring and little fingers, worse leaning on the elbow or keeping it bent: the ulnar nerve. In climbers, ulnar nerve compression has been mistaken for a tendon problem. See the ulnar nerve guide.
Inner-elbow pain when you throw, or a feeling that the elbow gives way, especially in a young thrower: get it assessed. In young throwers with a growth-plate fracture on the inner elbow, most had elbow pain beforehand.
The evidence is thin, and borrowed from tennis elbowEmerging evidence
A review of exercise and mobilisation for tennis and golfer's elbow found 12 trials, all of them on tennis elbow. A 2026 review of slow-lowering exercise for golfer's elbow found 5 small studies (143 people), a mix of small trials and before-and-after studies; only one trial showed an advantage, and the certainty is low. It is treated the same way as tennis elbow.
Plainly: golfer's elbow has hardly been studied. The plan below borrows from tennis elbow research, which is reasonable but not proven.
In 20 people whose golfer's elbow had not improved with earlier treatment (physiotherapy, injections, PRP or anti-inflammatories), adding a slow-lowering twist of a flexible bar for the wrist flexors to physiotherapy, 3 sets of 15, improved the disability score from 34.7 to 7.9 out of 100 over about 6 weeks. There was no comparison group, other treatments were given at the same time, and follow-up was 6 weeks; the authors note these limits.
NHS leaflets combine stretching with slow-lowering wrist curls. NHS inform: stretch 4 times for 20 seconds, three times a day, and wrist curls 3 sets of 12 once a day. NHS Fife: stretch 3 times for 20 to 30 seconds, three times a day, and lowering over 6 seconds, 3 sets of 10, three times a day, which "may be slightly uncomfortable to begin with". NHS Borders starts with stretches, forearm turns and elbow bends, then still holds of 5 to 10 seconds and slow lowering with a tin of beans.
A steroid injection helps at 6 weeks, not afterEmerging evidence
In a double-blind trial of 58 people (60 elbows), a steroid injection gave less pain at 6 weeks than a salt-water injection, but no difference at 3 months or a year. Both groups improved, which the authors put down mainly to time. Versus Arthritis says steroid injections aren't recommended for tennis or golfer's elbow.
NHS leaflets suggest a clasp or brace during the jobs that hurt. No trial has tested one for golfer's elbow; for tennis elbow, straps ease pain while worn, with no proven long-term benefit. Surgery is rarely needed.
Some discomfort during forearm exercises is fine. Keep it mild: no more than about 3 to 4 out of 10. It should settle within an hour or so, and your elbow should be no worse the next morning. If it is worse, go lighter next time (a lighter weight, a bendier bar, fewer reps or a shorter hold), not nothing. When a set no longer causes any discomfort, it's time to progress.
Tingling is the exception: stop any exercise or position that brings on pins and needles or numbness in your hand, especially in the ring and little fingers, and avoid holding the elbow fully bent while it settles.
This is lower than the 5 out of 10 used on this site's back and shoulder pages, because most elbow trials used pain-free or nearly pain-free exercise. A UK consensus paper that reviewed the tennis elbow trials reports that all but one asked for pain-free exercise; the exception, as that paper describes it, allowed mild pain below 4 out of 10. The JOSPT guideline says the load should not make symptoms worse, and elbow specialists suggest doing the flexible-bar exercises with discomfort of about 3 to 4 out of 10.
Pushing harder backfires at the elbow. Still holds done above people's own pain threshold left more pain 30 minutes later, while holds below it did not, and in one trial most people gave up heavy loading, mainly because it aggravated their pain. In long-lasting muscle and joint pain generally, allowing some pain did no harm. The exact 3 to 4 out of 10 figure and the settling times are editorial. If pain climbs from week to week, or you notice a warning sign, stop and get it checked.
5 holds of 30 to 45 s, once a day · Held still, palm up, the wrist level and the forearm supported. NHS Borders uses 5 to 10 holds of 5 to 10 s; the longer holds borrow a UK tennis elbow consensus dose
Move on when: Add load one change at a time, and build sport or work sessions up over weeks.
Follow along: a timer, a cue and the next move, one step at a time.
What to change for now
What aggravates golfer's elbow
Forceful, repeated gripping is the main risk, so ease off long, hard gripping for now: thicker handles, straps for heavy pulls, shorter climbing and hanging sessions. Curling the wrist and turning the palm down against resistance are the inner-elbow muscles' jobs; a neutral, thumb-up grip often feels better (editorial). For golf, throwing or racquet sports, play fewer balls or shots per session and get technique advice.
It hasn't been studied as well as tennis elbow. In the injection trial, both groups improved over a year, and NHS leaflets say most cases settle with time. Think in months rather than weeks.
Golfer's elbow or cubital tunnel syndrome?
Tingling or numbness in the ring and little fingers points to the ulnar nerve (cubital tunnel syndrome), especially if it's worse leaning on the elbow or keeping it bent. An ache over the inner bump, worse gripping, without tingling, is golfer's elbow. You can have both.
Golfer's elbow or a UCL (Tommy John) injury?
The ulnar collateral ligament matters mainly in overhead throwers. Inner-elbow pain when you throw, or a feeling that the elbow gives way, needs assessment, and in a child or teenager who throws it is a reason to stop throwing and get checked.
Should I wear a brace for golfer's elbow?
It's optional, during the jobs that hurt. NHS leaflets suggest one, but no trial has tested a brace for golfer's elbow; for tennis elbow, straps ease pain while worn without a proven long-term benefit.
Which exercises should I avoid with golfer's elbow?
Nothing is banned for good. For now, ease off long, hard gripping, heavy wrist curls, hanging and weight through bent-back wrists, such as floor push-ups and kneeling forearm stretches. Keep forearm exercises within the elbow pain rule.
Are there golfer's elbow exercises with a FlexBar?
Yes: the reverse Tyler twist, the mirror of the tennis elbow twist, where the sore wrist starts curled forward. It helped in one small case series without a comparison group, so treat it as an option rather than a proven fix. Wrist curls with slow lowering do a similar job.
Is golfer's elbow the same as tennis elbow?
It is the same kind of tendon problem on the other side of the elbow: the inside rather than the outside. It is less common, has been studied much less, and is treated the same way, with the plan mirrored for the muscles that bend the wrist.
Exercise education, not a diagnosis or treatment plan. It is written from the guidelines and studies listed above; review by a clinician is pending. If your pain follows an injury, is severe, is getting worse, or comes with any warning sign listed on this page, get it assessed. Health disclaimer.
