The World No. 2 has been out since the opening match of TGL and last played on the PGA Tour at The Sentry in Hawaii, the first tournament of the 2025 season. Schauffele told Golfweek he injured his rib cage in the offseason and tried to play through it in Hawaii, where he finished 30th. Described as an acute intercostal strain/microtear, Schauffele admitted to underestimating how much the injury was bothering him. He decided to shut it down after withdrawing from the Farmers Insurance Open in San Diego, his hometown tournament. He then missed two signature events: the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am and this past week's Genesis Invitational. "I need a little more TLC, especially at 31 versus 25, and make sure everything is oiled correctly," he said. "I thought I’d be fine and kept going and played through it at Sentry and at the first TGL match. I was pretty much tapped. I knew it was getting significantly worse and needed time off." The 31-year-old is coming off the best season of his career, winning his first major championship at the PGA Championship at Valhalla, making a clutch putt at the 72nd hole to defeat Bryson DeChambeau by one stroke. Schauffele then nabbed his second major of the 2024 campaign at The Open Championship, shooting an incredible 6-under 65 on Sunday at Royal Troon to win in comeback fashion. With expectations now being higher than ever for Schauffele after such a successful season, he wanted to ensure he's fully healthy before returning on Tour. "Everyone I’ve talked to said the worst thing you can do is come back too soon. Guys have told me about being hurt 6-12 weeks later. I don’t want to deal with a stop and go. Once I’m back, I just want to go. I’ve been instructed to be patient and make sure I’m 100 percent." Schauffele has been hitting golf balls and even ramped up his practice ahead of the WM Phoenix Open and Genesis Invitational for a potential return, but never felt fully comfortable enough to commit to either tournament. But with two more weeks until his targeted return at the Arnold Palmer Invitational, another Signature Event from Mar. 6-9, Schauffele believes he'll be ready to start his preparation for the Masters in April. "I’m losing my mind sitting at home watching everybody compete," he said. "But I'm taking the long view. I’m looking years down the road versus me being in the mix right now."