Xander Schauffele was not in East Lake for the first time in his career. This is the result of a rib injury that took two months at the start of the season. He never found his game at all out of sync with his swing in his game.
“It’s good to have three months off, and to be honest it’s ideal,” Schauffele said at the BMW Championship. “I feel like I need to go far from golf anytime soon, and that’s how I feel.”
But that’s not the reality. Schauffele had a big year in the majors last year. He won the top 10 opens in the PGA Championship and two other ones.
3 months? The Ryder Cup starts on the 38th.
Schauffele was one of the players who confirmed to the Associated Press in July that the US team was scheduled to play at the Procore Championship in Napa from September 8-14, two weeks before the Ryder Cup. The exception is Bryson Dechambeau, who was stopped in 2022 when it bolted to a Saudi-funded Liv Golf and was then among those who sued the PGA Tour.
Also, you may be missing the Shauferle.
“I don’t know,” Schaufele said when asked if he was there. “I haven’t signed up yet. It’s nice to play, but if you don’t think the performance will help me, I won’t play.”
Schaufele extended his cut streak to 71, despite recovery from a rib injury that led to his swing coming out of the way. He also managed six finishes in the majors with top 12 and two top 10.
“I think I understand it more than before,” he said. “My previous complaint was that I didn’t understand why I was doing something certain. Now I know why I don’t know how to make it worse and fix it. So, frustration for a variety of reasons.
He kept his attitude in good condition. Regardless of his outcome from California, he is famous for his positive attitude – and he looks forward to sorting it out.
“I love golf, I love trying to understand that,” he said. “But it was a challenge. You need to hit the reset button. The next step is to have a solid plan and stick to it.”
