CASTLE ROCK, Colo. – Scottie Scheffler had a moment of concern Thursday when the FedExCup points leader grabbed his lower back after hitting his second shot inside the 55-foot zone.and gap in the BMW Championship.
Scheffler said he woke up “a little stiff” for the first round of the PGA Tour’s second playoff event. He showed no noticeable signs of discomfort until he attempted a high draw from a steep sidehill on the uphill par-5.
“I was struggling to get it loose,” he said. “Because it was a little tight, it was hard for me to get through, and I was struggling most of the day to get through the ball. On 17, I tried to hit a high draw, and that’s a shot where I really have to use a big turn, a big movement. I was just feeling it a little bit. But other than that, everything’s good.”
Scheffler parred the final two holes in an opening round of 1-under 71, leaving him five strokes off the fastest time as he tries to stay ahead of the FedExCup standings heading into the final.
After the round, Scheffler repeatedly downplayed any problem, attributing it to possibly hitting too many balls on Wednesday. He said he would ice the area and receive his normal treatment after the round.
“I’ll be back to normal tomorrow,” he said.
Scheffler will secure the top spot at East Lake with a solo fourth or better this week at Castle Pines, a long, grueling hike on an 8,100-yard course that plays at 6,400 feet above sea level. He could potentially lose the top spot if second-seeded Xander Schauffele wins the BMW and Scheffler finishes worse than a two-way tie for fourth.
Schauffele, who opened with a 3-under 69 alongside Scheffler, said he noticed Scheffler sometimes looked “a little stiff” when he turned his head. But Schauffele also recalled how the world No. 1 suffered a neck injury at The Players but still narrowly defeated him at the end, one of his six victories this season.
“I think it’s a bad sign for everyone,” Schauffele said with a smile.
Last week, it was Scheffler himself – when explaining why it is “stupid” to call the FedExCup a season-long race when it essentially amounts to one tournament – who raised the possibility that an injury could affect the final outcome.
“Hypothetically, if we get to East Lake and my neck flares up and it doesn’t heal like it did at The Players, I’ll finish 30thand in the FedExCup because I had to withdraw from the last tournament,” Scheffler said. “Is that really the race of the whole season? No. It is what it is.”
