Jason Bohn makes RBC Heritage 1st PGA Tour start since heart attack

As Jason Bohn talked under an overcast Hilton Head Island sky Tuesday, fellow PGA Tour golfer Camilo Villegas walked past and squeezed his shoulder.

More players walking on and off the driving range at Harbour Town Golf Links paused to offer Bohn encouragement. A caddie stopped and tucked the tag back inside Bohn’s white Titleist visor.

“See? Everybody’s looking out for me,” Bohn said.

The 42-year-old professional is making the RBC Heritage Presented by Boeing his first event back since suffering a major heart attack in February. Bohn walked off the golf course after making the cut at the Honda Classic in Florida and later checked into the hospital with chest pains.

A major artery was almost completely blocked, and Bohn spent five days in the hospital. He was cleared to play last week after tests showed a healthy amount of blood pumping out of his heart — a measurement shown as a percentage called an ejection fraction.

A healthy ejection fraction is between 55 percent and 70 percent. After the heart attack, Bohn’s percentage was in the 20s.

During his recovery, Bohn spent time on the golf course, but it was mostly in a cart watching his kids play at Governors Towne Club near his Acworth, Ga., home. He later hit some wedge shots and plotted with his coach the best path to a comeback.

He said he is not concerned about his performance this week, but on being back and able to play one of his favorite venues.

“Mentally and personally, it’s really important for me to get back out and say ‘Hey, everything’s going to be totally fine, totally normal,’ ” Bohn said.

Bohn played a practice round Tuesday with past Heritage champion Carl Pettersson and Charles Howell III. The group enjoyed more than a few laughs, and Bohn reacted to shots with the enthusiasm of someone 20 years younger.

“Nooo, you can’t stay there,” he said, disappointed with an approach on No. 15. “Oh, it can stay there,” a playing partner responded in some playful needling.

“Oh yeah, there it is,” Bohn yelled after a drive down the middle on the next hole. “Get you some of that, Charles Howell.”

There was no family history to warn of the heart attack, Bohn said. He is learning about how to live more healthy and taking medication to lessen the chances of another attack, some of medicine he expects to take the rest of his life.

His diet hasn’t changed drastically. His kids asked if he could still eat popcorn at the movies, and he told them he could, just not multiple times a day.

Bohn started the season strong, with two top-three finishes in October. His best finish at Harbour Town in the past five years was a tie for 36th, and he has no lofty expectations this week on a demanding layout.

“Nobody’s concerned about my game, and rightfully so,” said Bohn, who has won twice on the PGA Tour. “And I’m not really that concerned about my game right now, either. I know it will come back.”

This story was originally published April 12, 2016 at 4:30 PM with the headline "Jason Bohn makes RBC Heritage 1st PGA Tour start since heart attack."