Xander Schauffele withdraws from The American Express

Xander Schauffele has decided to skip the third event of the 2025 PGA Tour season in Southern California.

World No. 2 Xander Schauffele has withdrawn from The American Express, according to the official PGA Tour Communications social channels.

Schauffele, who participated in TGL’s debut match against The Bay Golf Club on Jan. 7, was scheduled to play in the Coachella Valley this week. The tour even planned on Schauffele holding a pre-tournament press conference before Thursday’s opening round, but that has since been canceled. FanDuel also listed Schauffele as the pre-tournament favorite, a distinction that now falls to Sungjae Im and Justin Thomas.

The tour gave no reason for Schauffele’s late withdrawal. Phillip Knowles will replace him in the field.

Perhaps Schauffele withdrew because he did not want to crisscross the country once more and burn out his energy so early in the season. The current Champion Golfer of the Year and reigning PGA Championship winner began the year at The Sentry in Maui, tying for 36th at Kapalua. He then hopped on a plane and flew five time zones to South Florida, where the first-ever TGL match awaited him. His New York Golf Club then went on to lose handily by a score of 9-to-2, but Schauffele gave no indications that he sustained any injury — or felt any jet lag — in his post-match interview.

At any rate, Schauffele is expected to play at the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am during the first week of February, which will mark the second Signature Event of the season. Scottie Scheffler and Rory McIlroy are also slated to play that week, marking the first time that the top three players in the world will play in the same event this year.

Jack Milko is a golf staff writer for SB Nation’s Playing Through. Follow him on X @jack_milko.