PGA Tour winner admits he’s still struggling with injury the night before the PGA Championship and is in pain when driving

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One PGA Tour winner’s preparation for the PGA Championship at Quail Hollow this week won’t have filled him with any confidence.

The last few days have been problematic, with heavy rain preventing the players from practicing on Monday and making the conditions softer than they will be in the tournament.

But the world number 54’s build-up to the second major championship of the season, in particular, couldn’t have gone much worse.

He explained on social media before the PGA Championship started what he’s been dealing with this week.

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Michael Kim reveals injury before PGA Championship

Michael Kim’s impressive 2025 season has tailed off in recent weeks, finishing tied-for-54th at the RBC Heritage and withdrawing from the Truist Championship.

He’s expecting to tee it up at Quail Hollow on Thursday, though that’s not guaranteed because of an ongoing back problem.

“As for myself, I’m getting treatment on my back, cold plunge, needles, red light, throwing the full lot at it, and it’s progressing,” Kim said on Wednesday.

The 31-year-old said what he would’ve scored on Tuesday if he had played a practice round, despite his back injury.

“I probably would have shot 85 yesterday, but felt better today. Long irons and drivers still bother me a touch, but I’ll most likely give it a try.”

It’s hard to feel sorry for a PGA Tour player when most of us would love to shoot 85 in tournament conditions at Quail Hollow, but that’s obviously a long way from where Kim needs to be to compete.

Michael Kim shares thoughts on playing conditions at Quail Hollow

Kim walked the course at Quail Hollow to get a feel for the conditions without having to put his injured back to the test.

He said that the course is “playing long” because of the soft ground, which should suit big-hitters like Rory McIlroy and Bryson DeChambeau, but the greens are still firm.

“Fairways are really wet. The low areas or collection areas around the greens still have quite a bit of water on them.

“I don’t know if it ever stops raining here in Charlotte. It even rained pretty good this morning and hasn’t had much of a chance to dry up. It’s playing long.

“Greens are still decently firm. They have sub-air and, compared to the fairways, they’re really nice. Wedges are holding, but long irons have some bounce. By the weekend, I think they’ll be able to have them pretty firm.”