PGA Tour star Xander Schauffele: "I think everyone around me would like it to be"

PGA Tour star Xander Schauffele appeared to indicate his return from injury is proving harder than expected. 

Schauffele sounded extremely unhappy with his game during the 2025 Players Championship at TPC Sawgrass. 

The golfer was forced to miss eight weeks of the season owing to a rib injury that he sustained last December. 

He returned at Bay Hill and shared 40th place at the Arnold Palmer Invitational. 

And while he kept alive his cut streak (59) at the PGA Tour's flagship event, he ultimately finished dead last. 

"It's been harder than I thought," Schauffele told reporters before the Valspar Championship at Innisbrook Resort. 

"Maybe I'm being a little impatient, but competition golf is not the same as playing at home."

Schauffele currently holds the longest active streak of cuts made on the PGA Tour. 

He entered the 2025 Players on 58 in a row and made it through on the number. 

The impressive streak didn't appear to be at the forefront of Schauffele's mind and instead he was more concerned about the state of his game.

"It's pretty gross, to be completely honest," he told reporters.

Schauffele conceded in his news conference on Wednesday that perhaps he should lower his expectations a tad. 

"This is my first sort of injury I've ever dealt with," he said. "Everyone that I've talked to that was hurt sort of says ease your way back in [because] you can hurt yourself again.

"So everyone's telling me to be patient. I think in assessment you can be as hard as you want. When I'm playing out there my expectations aren't through the roof, I don't think. 

"I'm pretty happy with a drive that's in the fairway right now, and I'm pretty happy when I hit a good cut or good draw. 

"But when you're assessing yourself I think it's important, if you want to elevate your game, to be harsh. 

"It's easy to be biased and think you're doing okay. So, yeah, that's kind of where that maybe what seems to be a harsh assessment came from."

Schauffele has been told by his medical team to only hit a certain amount of balls throughout the week. 

The two-time major champion admitted last week ignored that advice to work on his swing. 

Still, it looks as though we might see Schauffele add one more event to his schedule before the 2025 Masters.

"I think everyone around me would like it to be [my last start before Augusta]," Schauffele said. 

"I think The Masters is demanding, Augusta National's demanding, and you imagine you would like to, you would rather play good golf going in there than not."