Kenny Chesney is rescheduling the opening weekend of his Somewhere in the Sun tour after tearing the ligaments in his right ankle when he fell on a set of stairs while carrying suitcases. Chesney made the decision to postpone three concert dates after spending Thursday morning (March 3) with orthopedic specialists in Nashville.

Chesney is still scheduled to perform Wednesday (March 9) at the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo. The rodeo performance uses different staging and does not require the physical movement of Chesney's full concert production.

"Mr. Chesney has a severe ligament injury to his right ankle," reported Dr. Burton Elrod, who also serves as a team physician for the Tennessee Titans. "He's going to have to undergo extensive and immediate physical therapy and rehab. He's going to have to play sore -- with his ankle taped or with a brace under his boot, but he's like an athlete who can perform with some pain. He wants to get back out there, and because he's so athletic and in such good shape, he is going to heal a lot better and quicker than most people."

The official tour was originally set to begin with shows March 10-11 in Green Bay, Wis. Those dates have been rescheduled for March 23-24. A March 13 concert in Fargo, N.D., has been moved to March 25, and the March 12 show in St. Paul, Minn., has been changed to March 26. All other tour dates are unchanged, beginning with a March 17 stop in Tupelo, Miss.

"I was very excited about kicking off this tour," Chesney said in a written statement. "But hopefully this will only be a short setback ... and you can bet I'm gonna be real serious about my physical therapy. ... I wanna be in fighting shape and good to go for the shows."

The singer added, "My ankle looks like a softball -- and I'm keeping it elevated. We have one of the very best doctors in the country treating me. I've got a Game Ready boot, which we picked up from the Titans, to help accelerate healing ... so we're doing everything we can."