Michael Kim reacts to Jordan Spieth’s “close call” neck injury that jeopardised his Travelers Championship run

Jordan Spieth was forced to withdraw from the Travelers Championship after suffering a neck injury just moments before teeing off in the opening round. Fellow PGA Tour pro Michael Kim, who was also in the field, later revealed how close Spieth came to not starting at all, calling it a “super close” call.

Spieth, making his 16th start of the season, hurt his neck while warming up on the range ahead of his Thursday round at TPC River Highlands. Despite the pain, he decided to begin his round, but things quickly took a turn.

The three-time major winner was 5-over through 12 holes when he reached the par-5 13th. After hitting his tee shot, Spieth could be heard letting out a painful grunt. His second shot barely got off the ground and found a bunker, prompting him to turn to his caddie, Michael Greller, and say, “I’m done. Can’t do it. I’m sorry.”

Unsure of the withdrawal procedure, Spieth called in a rules official. He then handed his scorecard to playing partner Luke Clanton and was taken back to the clubhouse by a golf cart.

Michael Kim later shared on X:

"Jordan Spieth was getting his neck treated 10min before his tee time… was super close"

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Speaking to reporters afterward, Jordan Spieth explained how the injury developed.

“Everything was great in my gym session, and I’ve been very, very excited to go out and play. Things have been getting better and better, and then my right scap just kind of locked, like tightened midway through the warm-up, and I just kept hitting, and then all of a sudden it was moving up ... and then it was over the left and then it was like everything, so I stopped. It was both sides of my neck and upper back,” Spieth said.

Spieth ended his warm-up nearly 30 minutes early and immediately went to see his physio, Marnus Marais. He wasn’t sure what caused the issue, though he guessed it may have been from sleeping in a bad position.

“I was just going to try to see if I could somehow get through at even. It’s a weird situation with an elevated event and no cut and important points and stuff. It’s like, well, what’s the downside if I can finish of just finishing even if it’s ugly, and then I hit my tee shot on 13, and it legitimately really hurt,” Spieth added.

"I was walking off that tee, and I’m like, if it’s even harder to turn, then I’m not going to be able to make a backswing that’s even useful, and that’s what happened on the bunker shot. I was like, it’s only going to get worse to finish the round, and it’s not worth it. I thought that was the time."

Since it was a no-cut, limited-field event, Spieth will receive the last-place prize money but won’t earn any FedExCup points.

The 31-year-old had previously missed the first month of the season as he was recovering from a left wrist surgery that he underwent August last year. He is currently 37th in the FedExCup standings, with four top-10 finishes in 15 starts. He most recently finished T-23 at the U.S. Open.

How did Jordan Spieth play before withdrawing from the Travelers Championship?

Jordan Spieth managed to play 12 holes before withdrawing from the opening round of the Travelers Championship. He carded five bogeys and finished 5-over through those 12 holes.

Here is his hole-by-hole scorecard: