Tony Romo continues to stay away from offseason golf

IRVING, Texas -- Even though Tony Romo has said his surgically repaired back has gotten stronger, the Dallas Cowboys quarterback is continuing to stay away from competitive golf.

This is the third straight offseason that Romo has not put his golf game on public view after undergoing a surgery to remove a cyst and a discectomy at different points in 2013.

Romo is an avid golfer and previously has attempted to qualify for the U.S. Open. Golf Digest rated Romo as the best golfer among professional athletes in 2009.

Romo has also cut back on his pickup basketball and soccer games that helped feed his competitive nature in the offseason as well as maintain his conditioning.

Instead of golf, basketball or soccer, Romo has turned his training to fill the void.

"Well, I love football," Romo said last week at Fashion's First Down, a charity event that was led by his wife, Candice. "I think what you find is that you love the game of football so much that it's easy to have other things take a backseat."

While pitching wedges, 3-pointers and penalty shots were Romo's outlet, he has used his non-stop rehab to strengthen his core, back and legs as the new measuring stick.

"I think anybody who knows me well knows that competition is what I thrive on, regardless of what it is in life," Romo said. "I tell my wife sometimes, I'm like, as long as I'm able to compete on a daily basis with something, I sleep well at night. And I thrive on that.

"I think that's partly why I've been able to grow and continue to get better as a player. That is something that I feel like young players, if they just love competition, you'll consistently want that and thrive under it. When you have that you have a great chance to succeed."

In golf, basketball and soccer, a winner or loser is easy to figure out. Is Romo undefeated against himself in his current crave of competition?

"It's a battle consistently with myself," Romo said. "Sometimes I win, sometimes my other part of myself wins."

Romo also called this offseason the best he has had in two years, attributing his consistent presence at the Cowboys' OTAs to his "stronger" back.