MIRACULOUS RECOVERY

When Tanner Wencl stepped onto the course at Owatonna Country Club for his first round as an Owatonna Huskies golfer last week, he had already won before his first shot.

By stepping onto the tee box at Hole One, Wencl had officially defied the odds by inking his name as an athlete once more nearly 16 months after an accident almost took his life.

“The doctors initially told me he would never eat, walk or talk again,” said Wencl’s mother, Marisa. “I’m so proud of him. I want to yell, ‘Go Tanner’ at the top of my lungs, but it’s golf. There are no words for it. As a mother, this is the best gift ever.”

Tuesday’s round was the result of relentless determination.

“He’s only been awake for 11 months. He was in a coma for four months. It was hell… I’m not going to lie, he wanted to sit on his butt until he could walk again. I told him, ‘That’s not going to happen,’” said Marisa.

The extent of Tanner’s injuries included a fractured skull, ribs and vertebrae, as well as a bruised kidney and liver. The skull fracture also resulted in traumatic brain injury. His array of injuries stemmed from a sledding accident with a vehicle near Owatonna on Jan. 12, 2024.

The outlook was initially bleak with doctors at Mayo Clinic in Rochester uncertain if Wencl was going to survive while in a medically induced coma.

“I remember telling him as I stood over his bed in the hospital what I told all of my kids even before the accident. ‘You have one fight in life that you go through where nobody can help you. This is yours. I can’t help you,’” said Marisa.

Friends and family flooded Tanner’s room in a continuous revolving door of people, but despite moments of “neurostorming” – where sudden muscle movements occur due to stress responses – Wencl remained asleep.

Conversations were one-sided in responses, but the words still reached their mark.

“I heard them. I saw my friends - Hunter Spurgeon, Johnny Peters, Wyatt Macy, Zach Knott and everyone – and just all the feelings of them being there. I thought, ‘Are they ever going to stop coming to see me?’ And just knowing that they never stopped, it pushed me to finally wake up,” said Tanner.

That day came four months later, and with it a moment that Marisa will remember the rest of her life.

“It’s about time,” said a fully awake Tanner to his mother after emerging from the coma. The light-hearted response was as much of an icebreaker as it was an indication of Wencl’s mentality.

The first hurdle had been successfully cleared and Marisa’s initial worries began to subside.

“I walked in, the doctors looked in his eyes and said, ‘Tanner, do you know who this is?’ He said, ‘She’s my mom.’ And then he went back to sleep. That was enough for me, and I just started crying,” said Marisa with a laugh.

The fortunate new was that Tanner had maintained all his memories from before the accident.

According to Tanner, short-term memory loss post-accident has been a slight challenge but is continually improving.

Together, the two went to work on getting Tanner back onto his feet – quite literally.

“He’s a fighter. That’s what the doctors told us saved him. He’s athletic and young…  I know he has his downs sometimes because I push him so much. And I tell him these things that I have to believe too. I’m not going to lie, sometimes I go to my room and cry thinking, ‘I need to believe this because I tell him to,’” said Marisa Wencl on the early days of rehab.

The pushing worked as Tanner was eventually able to get the strength and coordination back to use a walker effectively.

“It’s getting easier when I’m walking. I used to fall into it a lot, and it was frustrating. But I knew over time that it would improve… I’m so happy [my mom] pushed me. I wouldn’t be where I am now if she didn’t push me,” said Tanner.

As his mobility and muscle strength improved, the reality of returning to athletics became more of a reality.

“We looked at golf and the doctors loved it because it’s non-contact. Obviously, it’s hard because he wants to be back out there with his friends playing hockey and lacrosse, but he has teammates from hockey that are out there with him and just because he can’t play those sports now doesn’t mean he won’t be able to in the future,” said Marisa.

According to Marisa, doctors said Tanner is in a two-year rehabilitation window where he will continue to regain movement and motor skills.

“I was there when he first came into the hospital and how far he’s come since the evening of the accident is nothing short of a miracle. He has broken all the odds that he can possibly break. He’s such an inspiration to our kids and our community. We love seeing him smile and continue down the path he’s on. He’s a tremendous kid,” said registered nurse Candace Roush, who treated Tanner when he arrived at the hospital in Owatonna before being transferred to Rochester.

His fast improvements in recovery also translated into a quick learning curve on the course.

Last week, Owatonna boys golf head coach Josh Woodrich gave Wencl the nod to take part in his first junior varsity competition.

“It was really cool for his mom to be there and support him. Just him being able to get the experience of competing again after all he’s gone through. Ultimately, that’s the reason why coaches coach. To see our athletes be able to achieve those life victories. Yeah, winning is nice, but we do what we do to see athletes who deserve those opportunities get the chance for the hard work to pay off,” said Woodrich.

So there went Tanner, cruising around Owatonna Country Club on his custom cart, aided by freshman Cooper Ingvaldson to and from his shots. The cart was provided to the Wencl family from a person in Idaho with the understanding that it be given to another family in need once they are done with it.

A smile beaming on his face as he greeted his mother on the turn to the back nine.

An athlete once more, but more importantly, a young man with a bright future and a changed outlook on life.

“I used to take everything for granted and now I’m thankful for everything and everyone I have in my life,” said Tanner.

Tanner’s road to recovery

• Sledding crash: Jan. 12, 2024
• Coma: 4 months in Rochester hospital
• Extensive rehab: Ongoing since May 2024
• Back to sports: April 29, 2025