“Got my a** kicked” – Xander Schauffele gives a no-holds barred take on returning to Arnold Palmer Invitational after injury

Xander Schauffele discussed his struggles after he returned to the 2025 Arnold Palmer Invitational following his injury. He had suffered a rib injury in December, with a detailed MRI later showing an intercostal strain and a cartilage tear.

The American golfer tried to play at the 2025 Genesis Invitational, but couldn't continue after playing nine holes.

Following that, Schauffele made his first appearance at the Bay Hill Golf Course and completed the first day of Arnold Palmer Invitational on Thursday. Following this, he joined a press conference and discussed his struggles after coming back from injury (via ASAP Sports):

“You know, got my a** kicked yeah, it's a tough place to come back to, not going to lie. Palm Springs would have been nice, something like that, that would have been a little bit easier, miss a couple, get a way with it... I knew I was going to come in on short notice to what is sort of like a major championship setup around the greens, and with the greens being crusty, I really felt it there more than anything else.”

Following the first round, Xander Schauffele ended up at T52 alongside Sepp Straka, Lucas Glover and others with 5 over. Schauffele shot 77 in the first round of the Arnold Palmer Invitational with one birdie on the last nine and is 10 shots behind the leader. In the second round, he will tee off with Justin Thomas at 9:55 am ET.

Before this, Schauffele played at the Sentry Tournament and finished at T30 with a score of 17 under 275.

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Xander Schauffele details his injury situation: "It was a kind of perfect storm"

Xander Schauffele won two Majors last season on the PGA Tour, but as luck would have it, his momentum was disrupted with a shoulder injury suffered in December. Talking about the moment he realized he had very likely injured himself, Schauffele said (via Golf Digest):

“There were some [alarm] bells that I ignored…There was no sort of, ‘Oh, shoot, my rib's killing me,’ that kind of moment where, like it was in the gym or swinging. It was a kind of perfect storm. Trainer had to go back, renew his visa. I was left on my own and, apparently, I'm still a toddler. I kept training and golfing and training and golfing, and I'm used to having someone either hold my hand or do something as simple as soft tissue.”

Before the injury, Xander Schauffele won the PGA Championship in 2024 with a score of 21 under 263. He also triumphed at the Open Championship with a score of 9 under 275.

Besides these, he had an impressive 2024 campaign, with 13 top ten finishes on the PGA Tour, including a T2 at the FedEx St. Jude Championship and a T2 at the THE PLAYERS Championship.