Reed is hospitalized with pneumonia
Likely to miss FedEx Cup playoffs, in danger of losing Ryder Cup spot
Patrick Reed, hobbled by an ankle injury that forced him to withdraw from the Northern Trust last week, is hospitalized with bilateral pneumonia, which puts his availability for the FedEx Cup playoffs and Ryder Cup in doubt.
Reed left Jersey City, N.J., where he was preparing to play in the Northern Trust, last Wednesday and returned to his Houston home to have his ankle examined. He was diagnosed with bilateral interstitial pneumonia (or double pneumonia) and was hospitalized at the Methodist Hospital in the Texas Medical Center early Friday morning.
“I just want to update everyone,” Reed said in a statement released by the Golf Channel’s Todd Lewis. “First and foremost — thank you all for your support. The good news is, my ankle is OK. The bad news is I’ve been in the hospital with bilateral pneumonia. I’m on the road to recovery, once I’m cleared from the doctors — I look forward to returning. I wish you all the best and I can’t wait to get back out there!”
Reed’swife, Justine, said he remained hospitalized in a text Monday that CBS’s Amanda Balionis read during the broadcast of the final round of the Northern Trust.
“Patrick is still in the hospital, but he’s doing much better,” the text read. “It was very scary the last few days, and right now we don’t have a timeline on his recovery. I never count him out but I do know he will not be able to play [the] BMW [which begins Aug. 26]. We are just taking it one day at a time. We are following all of the doctor’s orders and you can sure bet as soon as they give him the goahead to play, he will. But our main concern right now is getting him back to 100%.
“We live our lives on a schedule, it’s very hard to be told there is no timeline, it just depends how fast his body can safely recover. I want to express to you and everyone how appreciative we are of everyone’s support.”
Reed ranks 22nd in the FedEx Cup standings and might be outside the top 30 after the BMW at Caves Valley Golf Club in Owings Mills, Md. That would mean he would miss the Tour Championship the following week.
As for the Ryder Cup, he is ninth in those rankings, a position that means he would not automatically qualify for the event, which begins Sept. 24 at Wisconsin’s Whistling Straits Golf Club. If healthy, he is likely to be selected by team captain Steve Stricker when he names the remaining six golfers on the team Sept. 8.