Jordan Spieth will be playing PGA National for the first time as a professional this week as he tees it up at the Cognizant Classic in the Palm Beaches.
While speaking to the media in his pre-tournament press conference, the three-time major champion revealed that he's still not back to pre-injury form following offseason wrist surgery.
“I don’t enjoy the way it feels waking up, and if it’s every day, it’s O.K. by the time I play, but it’s not ideal because I would like to be able to feel pretty good in all conditions, and it wasn’t that way on the West Coast,” said the 31-year-old.
Spieth’s West Coast swing started strong at the WM Phoenix Open, where he found himself in contention before ultimately finishing in a tie for fourth. The other two tournaments didn’t go quite as well as he finished T69 (out of 78) at the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am and missed the cut at the Genesis Invitational.
Spieth described what it was like playing post-surgery on the West Coast swing.
“I had some real experiences that tell me that everything is going to get better,” he said. “I’m just trying to find the right balance of rest and playing because it’s not—I rested it for six days straight last week, and I came back, and it was way worse the first day. It was 25 degrees, and I was hitting off a mat.
“But it was still worse, as in—you know, putting some force into it since it’s healed can sometimes actually loosen it up, can make it better. So it’s trying to find that right balance on these full days. It was a lot easier when it was on a smaller ball count and you could take the time to mess with different options.”
As is often the goal for Spieth, he aims to be playing his best golf when he makes his return to Augusta National in April, where he won in 2015 and came oh-so-close in 2016.
“I feel like the West Coast was kind of a let's see how everything is feeling post-surgery. I missed the first month of the season. I just wasn't ready to play any of those events yet. And it was really nice to get back and then even to get into contention one week,” he said.
“So, my goal now, as we look towards the Masters, is to try to play difficult golf courses and work my way into contention and just see what I can improve upon by the time we get to Augusta.”
Although Spieth will be making his first Cognizant Classic start this week, he did play the course as a junior golfer.
Spieth added that he's playing this week to help ensure he doesn't fall outside of the top 50 of the FedEx Cup standings.
“So, this year, the fact that I hadn’t played much, and then I'm not sure exactly what I’m going to be able to play going forward, I think this year’s schedule is just a little bit up in arms for me as I try to get my feet under me,” he said. “I also am playing a bit of catch-up. I don’t like finishing outside the top 50 with the new system.”
The Cognizant Classic will air on Golf Channel on Thursday and Friday, as well as the start of play Saturday and Sunday. Coverage will then move to NBC at 3 p.m. ET on Saturday and Sunday.
This article was originally published on www.si.com as Jordan Spieth Still Not 100% Healthy Following Offseason Wrist Surgery.