Scottie Scheffler Uncertain About Pebble Beach Return After Injury

World No. 1 Scottie Scheffler’s return to competitive golf remains up in the air as he recovers from right-hand surgery. He’s still weighing whether to play next week’s AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am.

“I’m feeling good,” Scheffler said during Monday’s Arnold Palmer Invitational media day. He’ll make his final decision about Pebble Beach in the “next few days to a week.” The tournament’s commitment deadline is Friday evening.

“I’m definitely anxious to get back, excited to get back, but I’m also not going to rush back just to rush back,” he explained. “Just want to make sure I’m getting back to normal, progressing the right way in recovery.”

The injury happened while Scheffler was making homemade raviolis for Christmas dinner. He sustained a puncture wound from broken glass that required surgery to remove the fragments. His manager Blake Smith initially projected a three to four week recovery timeline, but Scheffler wasn’t ready for last week’s American Express and had to withdraw.

While he’s keeping quiet about when he’ll start hitting full shots again, Golf Channel’s Todd Lewis reports Scheffler could begin this week if his doctor gives the green light.

The layoff has forced some lifestyle adjustments. Scheffler took two weeks off from all golf activity post-surgery, focusing only on lower body workouts. Even basic tasks proved challenging.

“Sometimes you don’t realize how uncoordinated you are until you have to brush your teeth left-handed,” Scheffler said with a laugh. He admitted he didn’t even attempt changing diapers one-handed.

There are signs of progress though. Recent video showed Scheffler back in the gym, gripping a bar with his wrapped right hand. It’s his longest competitive break since his December 18 exhibition match with Rory McIlroy, Brooks Koepka and Bryson DeChambeau.

The downtime has given Scheffler a rare chance to study his game. “I went back while I was sitting around elevating my hand post-surgery and watched some old shots, watched some old tournaments,” he said. “I tried to almost train a little bit at home to remind my brain what I was feeling over certain shots, what my hands felt like on the club.”

For a player who won nine worldwide events last year, getting back to that form is clearly the priority. But Scheffler seems determined to make sure he’s fully healed before making his 2024 debut.