Patrick Reed announces he will compete at TOUR Championship
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MEMPHIS, TN - AUGUST 04: Patrick Reed is all smiles at the 18th hole prior to the World Golf Championships-FedEx St. Jude Invitational at TPC Southwind on August 4, 2021 in Memphis, Tennessee. (Photo by Tracy Wilcox/PGA TOUR via Getty Images)
Patrick Reed confirmed he will compete in this week’s TOUR Championship after bilateral pneumonia forced him to miss the first two events of the FedExCup Playoffs.
Reed clung to the 30th spot in the FedExCup standings after last week’s BMW Championship, finishing 42 points ahead of K.H. Lee. By doing so, Reed qualified for his eighth consecutive TOUR Championship.
“ATL here we come! Really appreciated everyone’s prayers and well wishes. Excited to get back out there and give it my best shot this week!” he wrote Tuesday on Instagram.
This will be Reed’s first start since finishing T31 in the World Golf Championships-FedEx St. Jude Invitational more than three weeks ago.
He withdrew from the Wyndham Championship – where he collected his first PGA TOUR victory eight years ago – with an ankle injury. That injury also forced him to withdraw from THE NORTHERN TRUST. He was hospitalized after returning home to Houston.
Bilateral interstitial pneumonia, also called double pneumonia, is an infection in both lungs that can cause inflammation and scarring. He was admitted to Houston Methodist Hospital on Aug. 20.
“It got really bad very quickly,” Reed’s wife, Justine, told Golf Channel’s Todd Lewis. Reed returned home last week.
“It’s great to be back home with the family, kids and Justine,” Reed told Golfweek in a text message last week. “It makes the recovery process so much better. I’ve been focusing on my health and my family and Justine. You don’t realize how special you have it until something like this happens and I’m so happy just to be back recovering with them.”
The TOUR Championship also will offer Reed a final opportunity to audition for Ryder Cup captain Steve Stricker. Reed has represented the U.S. in the last six Ryder Cups and Presidents Cups. Stricker will round out his 12-man team Sept. 8, when he announces his six captain’s picks to join the six players who qualified Monday off of the points list. Reed, winner of this year’s Farmers Insurance Open, is 11th in the U.S. Ryder Cup standings.