PITTSFORD, N.Y. – Jordan Spieth arrived at Oak Hill on Tuesday to test his injured left wrist ahead of the PGA Championship.
Sporting a white wrap around his left wrist and black KT tape up his forearm, Spieth went through a 70-minute practice session, hitting every club in the bag, before heading out for a nine-hole practice round with world No. 1 Jon Rahm.
Spieth was not expected to speak with the media until Wednesday. Though he showed no signs of discomfort or any limitations, his status for the year’s second major was still uncertain; he and his team wanted to see how his wrist responded to Oak Hill’s punishing rough and a ramped-up practice schedule.
Full-field tee times from the PGA Championship
Spieth hasn’t played since a missed cut two weeks ago at the Wells Fargo Championship. That weekend, however, he said he experienced “severe” pain in his left wrist and opted to withdraw from the AT&T Byron Nelson, his hometown event, in Dallas, describing himself as “week to week.”
After hitting only a few balls at home to test his wrist, Spieth flew into town Monday and headed to the course early Tuesday afternoon, working his way through two buckets of balls for more than an hour in 30-mph winds.
70-minute practice session, going through every club in the bag. Seemed to be swinging fine, no restrictions, no grimaces. Heading out now for a 9-hole spin with Rahm. https://t.co/0LM5RUeZoN
— Ryan Lavner (@RyanLavnerGC) May 16, 2023
The timing of Spieth’s injury couldn’t have been much worse: He is playing some of his best golf in years and needs only a PGA title to become the sixth player to complete the career Grand Slam. He has not fared particularly well in previous PGA Championships, finishing in the top 10 just twice in 10 career appearances.
Hosting a major for the first time in a decade, Oak Hill has recently been restored to its original design. Set up as a par 70, the course will play about 7,500 yards, with thick, dense rough and deep, penal bunkers lining the fairways. Spieth missed the cut in his only other appearance at Oak Hill in 2013, in his first full season on the PGA Tour.
The PGA should have been in the middle of a busy five-week stretch for Spieth, with starts at the Wells Fargo, Nelson, PGA, Colonial and Memorial. It’s uncertain how his injury will affect his upcoming appearances.
If Spieth tees it up Thursday, he will start at 8:22 a.m. ET with Viktor Hovland and Shane Lowry.