PONTE VEDRA BEACH, Fla. — Rory McIlroy arrived at TPC Sawgrass at 2:20 p.m. ET, underwent about an hour of therapy in the posh locker room and didn’t make it through a full bag of range balls on Wednesday.
That, along with an afternoon stroll to chip and putt around the Stadium Course’s back nine, will count as the sum total of his Players Championship on-site preparation as the world No. 2 has been sidelined with back spasms since last Saturday when he withdrew from last week’s Arnold Palmer Invitational.
McIlroy, the defending champion at this week’s flagship event, remained at home in South Florida until Wednesday to rest and recover from the back spasms that occurred while he was warming up in the gym prior to Saturday’s third round at Bay Hill.
His range session at TPC Sawgrass was interrupted by an impromptu therapy session with his trainer, and the Northern Irishman only made it through the 6-iron in his bag before he met with the media.
“It’s better. It’s better than it was. I hit up until a 6-iron on the range there and it felt OK. I’ve got about, I don’t know, is it 20 hours until I tee off, or until I’m supposed to tee off tomorrow. So, yeah, we’ll see,” McIlroy said. “I’m taking it sort of hour by hour. But it feels better. That’s all I can say. Like I couldn’t stand to address the ball on Saturday morning on the range at Bay Hill, and it’s obviously better than that.
“Yeah, probably a game-time decision, but all indications are pointing in the right direction, so hopefully good night tonight. The drugs are working wonders, and then just keep it going from there.”
McIlroy said he hadn’t practiced since withdrawing from Bay Hill but he also said he wasn’t feeling any pain.
“I wouldn’t even call it pain; I would say just more like sensitivity,” he said. “It’s not really on the site or like it’s sort of more like the big — like even just hitting balls there for a little bit, just feel like my muscles around the area just getting a little bit fatigued.”
McIlroy is scheduled to tee off for the first round at 1:42 p.m. ET and he was optimistic the extra rest would help the recovery. He also said there was no chance to make the injury any worse if he does play.