Local hero and defending champion Charl Schwartzel was struck on the left wrist by a golf ball and withdrew from a pro-am after 10 holes ahead of Thursday’s start of the PGA Valspar Championship.
A ball struck by one of Schwartzel’s amateur playing partners on the first hole bounced off a tree and hit the 2011 Masters champion, causing his wrist to swell and his hand to go numb briefly.
“I’ve played golf for 28 years now and I’ve never been hit by a golf ball until this morning,” Schwartzel said.
“It was a bit of a fluke. Really bad luck.”
With ice and painkillers, Schwartzel was confident he would make his scheduled morning start alongside two-time Masters champion Bubba Watson of the United States and Sweden’s sixth-ranked Henrik Stenson, the reigning British Open champion.
“I’m planning on playing, whether I have to limp around or not,” Schwartzel said.
“I just hope it’s not something serious because I feel like I’m playing really well. I don’t want to have to sit out because of this silly injury.”
Schwartzel, hoping to become the event’s first back-to-back winner, is especially anxious to get more rounds played with the Masters less than a month away.
A sore left knee has limited his play so far this year.
