‘Tough week on the wrist’: Jordan Spieth ready for some rest after Genesis missed cut

SAN DIEGO — Jordan Spieth returned to competition on the PGA Tour the last three weeks to mixed results following surgery on his left wrist in August.

In his first start back at last month’s AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am, he finished tied for 69^th in the 80-player, no-cut event but he followed that with a tie for fourth at last week’s WM Phoenix Open, his best finish on Tour in over year.

That optimism, however, was short lived, in large part because of brutally cold and wet conditions combined with thick rough at Torrey Pines, which led to a short week at the Genesis Invitational and a reminder of the patience needed to come back from injury.

“It’s been a tough week on the wrist. I wasn’t sure if I’d hit one more shot like my shot on 16 yesterday, I wasn’t going to finish the first round. I was OK to go today, but this cold, wet weather and third week in a row, it was not good for it,” Spieth said following a second-round 74 and a missed cut at Torrey Pines.

Spieth said he tried to pace himself this week and limit his practice but the conditions took a toll and he was looking forward to week of rest and rehabilitation.

“It beat it up pretty good, but I’m hoping this next week, laying off of it for five or six days and working on it with therapy — it’s just inflammation so hopefully it will just go away and this will end up being a good thing that I kind of pushed it,” he said.

Following last year’s surgery, which repaired a tendon in his wrist that had popped out of its sheath, Spieth said he feels occasional pain during flop shots and shots from bunkers but at Torrey Pines he said the pain returned after he “saved a 4-iron” during Round 1 at the par-3 16^th hole.

“It’s always an iron or a wedge, it’s never really a wood,” he said.

Who missed the cut at the $20-million signature Genesis Invitational?

The Genesis Invitational is one of only three signature events with a halfway but.

Following his solid play last week at TPC Scottsdale, Spieth said he’s focused on being patient and that he knows it will take time before he’s back to 100% healthy.

“Right this second, it’s hard [to stay patient] but once I get back home and have a week off, it was a good start over the three weeks,” Spieth said. “I’ve made a lot of improvement from when I left to go to Pebble Beach to right now and so if I just continue to improve right now, long term, it will be good.”