Xander Schauffele has been away from active competition since he won the 2025 Baycurrent Classic. Now, as he gets ready for the Farmers Insurance Open, he revealed his troubles with the post-layoff adjustments. 

During the pre-tournament press conference at Torrey Pines, a reporter asked: "How long does it take you to get back in the swing of things? Like what's your daddy-hood and offseason and in terms of working again?"

"I think carrying a kid, I'm learning like just so slowly, you get like dad shoulder, neck's all messed up, you know what I mean? Stuff just happens when you're holding like a 15-pound, 20-pound bowling ball all day," Xander Schauffele explained.

"That was a little bit of a learning curve there," he added about adjusting as a new father. However, the PGA Tour member didn't slack off.

Xander Schauffele revealed that he’s been playing 18 holes at home with friends and fellow professionals to sharpen his skills. He missed East Lake for the birth of his child, but surpassed his own expectations when he got back on the greens.

“I was like kind of shocked with how well I played, to be completely honest, and had Japan and I played no golf in the last six months it feels like,” said the pro golfer.

However, is he confident coming to the Farmers Insurance Open? Or does he feel like he’s starting from scratch once again after staying away from the course for about a year?

Xander Schauffele Opens Up on His Return After the Long Layoff

“It feels like I'm starting from scratch," Schauffele admitted during the pre-game press conference.

Talking about his last win, he said, “I thought I did a lot of things really well that week and kind of got in the right mindset even though I was a bit rusty golf-wise. Definitely learned some things that week about sort of the mentality and sort of how focused of an approach I can actually have throughout a week of golf.”

However, the 32-year-old confirmed that he’s going to play a lot of golf in the coming couple of months. His current goal is to "tap back" into his former focus and win a few events. 

Thankfully, Xander Schauffele won't have to wait too long to test himself against some tough competition as the Farmers Insurance Open starts on January 29.

Written by

Krushna Pattnaik

Edited by

Sagnik Bagchi