Paul dislocated his right shoulder while snowboarding in Colorado and is likely to be out of action for at least two months.

“I am very frustrated as I was really looking forward to getting off to a fast start in 2012,” said Paul.

He was due to defend his Volvo Golf Champions title in South Africa and is also set to miss the European Tour’s entire Middle East swing, including his bid for a third victory in Abu Dhabi in six years.

“I’ve always played well in the desert and the Abu Dhabi HSBC Golf Championship is one of my favourite events of the year, so I will particularly hate sitting out that one,” he continued.

“The good news is that the experts I’ve seen say I don’t need surgery and, having already started my rehabilitation exercises, I should be back hitting balls in a few weeks.”

Paul rounded off his 2011 season with a tied 16th place at the European Tour finale, Dubai World Championship. The highlight being a 66 on the second day which put him in a share for 5th place. Talking after his round Paul said, “I am ready to contend and it gets me in the mix. The golf course is right there for the taking. If you get the right side of the pins, leave yourself the easy putts, the greens are so good there’s no reason why you can’t hole putts and someone will find a way of making lots of them over the weekend.”

Talking about his season Paul said,

“It will be great when I can put this year behind me. It’s been a frustrating season, and looking forward to next year already.

“I’ve had turf toe [ligament damage] and it affected my game more than I thought it would.

“But playing the golf I am now, knowing that I don’t have the full repertoire of shots in the bag and that I’m not firing on all cylinders, gives me a lot of confidence going into next year.”

“I just want to stay healthy now, and there is no reason I can’t get back to playing the golf I did in 2009. I also want to keep scoring Ryder Cup points, it’s very important to me to get back in that team.”

“I’m going to be in South Africa. The Volvo championship I won in Baharain. We’re going to Africa for that tournament this year, or next, 2012.

So I’ll go down there, play a few in the Middle East, and then the first event on the U.S. soil will be match play.”

DUBAI, UNITED ARAB EMIRATES – DECEMBER 10: Paul Casey of England plays his second shot at the par 5, 18th hole during the third round of the Dubai World Championship on the Earth Course at the Jumeirah Golf Estates on December 10, 2011 in Dubai, United Arab Emirates. (Photo by David Cannon/Getty Images)

Paul battled to his way to shoot 5-under 67 and finish in a tie for fourth place at the WGC-HSBC Champions.

“A little bit frustrated how good it was on the front nine and how good it was earlier in the week to not be able to conjure up that same form coming down the stretch,” Paul said.

Paul said he struggled with the positioning of his feet in the swing – an issue he has worked on with teacher Peter Kostis to help with his turf toe injury he has dealt with most of the year.

He said, “Nonetheless very happy, my golf is coming around and going the direction I want it to go.”

After day 2 Paul said commented on his round “That’s one of the best I’ve had in a long time”. “The golf I played today is the golf I remember playing. I’ve been trying to keep that right foot down as long as possible – it doesn’t hurt as much and it makes a massive difference. I can suddenly control where the golf ball is going.”

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Paul heads to the Sheshan International Golf club in Shanghai for this weeks HSBC Champions.

Having made an early impact in last week’s Shanghai Masters, Paul will be hoping to build on the positives and be challenging at the close.

Paul has been a winner in China twice before once at the 2006 Volvo China Open and before that at the 2005 TCL Classic.

Paul Casey of England acknowledges the crowd during the WGC-HSBC Champions golf tournament at the Sheshan International course in Shanghai on November 5, 2011. AFP PHOTO / Philippe Lopez (Photo credit should read PHILIPPE LOPEZ/AFP/Getty Images)

Paul had to withdraw from the McGladre Classic before the start of his third round after suffering an upset ­stomach. Paul, rated 20th in the world, started the PGA Tour’s penultimate event of the year in 127th place on the money and needed to break into the top 125 to secure full playing ­privileges for 2012.

After finishing T-7 last week at the Frys.com Open, Paul was playing this week at the McGladrey Classic to fulfill the 15-event minimum to keep a card. After the season ends, the 2-year exempt status Paul earned from winning the 2009 Shell Houston Open will expire.

A mixed final round of level par 71 left Paul tied 7th on -11 at the end of the Frys.com Open. Bryce Molder won with a score of -17.
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It’s all to play for going into the final day as Paul shot a 68 to finish the third round two shots adrift of leader Briny Baird.
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After the second round Paul leads the fog-delayed Frys.com Open on eight under par. Paul, the world number 20 and highest-ranked player at the event, holds a one-shot lead after carding a 64.
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Paul, who is still recovering from a toe injury, decided to return to the PGA Tour for the next two weeks to complete the minimum 15 events required to maintain his card for next season.

“The toe isn’t 100%,” the 34-year-old admitted. “I’ve had it since late May.

“It was a joint in my foot which wasn’t allowing my foot to move correctly and that put pressure on my toe.

“My goal right now is to get healthy, and I am probably about 70% [fully fit] – 2011 has been a frustrating year.”

Paul began the second round three shots back, but rolled in six birdies in his opening nine holes, the only blemish to his round coming on the 13th.

“The back nine, my front nine, the greens were perfect,” he added. “You’re not going to get greens any better than that.”

Casey feeling better, playing better
By Brian Wacker, PGATOUR.COM

SAN MARTIN, Calif. — Paul Casey came into this week needing a good performance to climb back inside the top 125 on the money list to secure his TOUR card for next year. Getting healthy, however, is a bigger priority he admitted.

Since May, Casey has been battling a right foot injury — most of that time he’s had a plate in his shoe and his toes were taped up. After a visit to Gary Gray and Dave Tiberio at the Gray Institute, though, Casey says he’s feeling about 70 percent.

“Going back a few weeks ago, I don’t know where I would have put it,” said Casey, who, in layman’s terms, couldn’t turn his foot correctly because of the injury.

He’s getting better, however, and it showed on Friday in the form of a 64 to take the lead at 8 under halfway through the Frys.com Open. That, by the way, comes on the heels of a victory in last week’s Shinhan Donghae Open in Korea, which in and of itself doesn’t mean a whole lot other than the jet lag Casey was fighting due to a 16-hour time difference.

“It’s the first time I’ve been on the golf course since making progress with the foot and the toes, and it was night and day,” Casey said. “Suddenly a little bit of confidence, the ball-striking is coming back.”

The result Friday? Eleven of 14 fairways and 15 of 18 greens in regulation. Not to mention just 26 putts, including a couple of birdies from long distance.

“It’s nice to look up and know that the golf ball is actually going in the direction that I wanted it to go in,” Casey said. “which hasn’t happened in a really long time.”

SAN MARTIN, CA – OCTOBER 08: Paul Casey makes a tee shot on the 18th hole during the third round of the Frys.com Open at the CordeValle Golf Club on October 8, 2011 in San Martin, California. (Photo by Robert Laberge/Getty Images)

PGA TOUR – WHAT THEY SAID : PAUL CASEY

JOEL SCHUCHMANN: Paul Casey, thanks for joining us here after a 5-under round today. If you could, maybe start with some opening comments.

Obviously can’t win it on Thursday but you certainly can lose it. You’re off the a great start.

PAUL CASEY: We were going to get a perfect golf course to play which we did this morning playing with Padraig and Justin. Greens were as good as you’re going to see them this week and, yeah, I was happy with that.

Birdies are obviously going to be flying around and you’ll be frustrated with only 2-under, to be honest with you, on my first nine of the today, the back-9, especially dropping a shot down on 18. Got it going a little bit on my second half including the eagle on 5 which was nice. First time I’ve had an eagle in awhile. I’m very happy with that.

It was the best round I’ve had in quite awhile and still struggled a little bit about the ball striking. This week, I think it’s all about the putting and started to make some putts and build a little bit of confidence.

JOEL SCHUCHMANN: Take some questions.

Q. Can you talk a little bit about the FedExCup and your position there and you’ve got to feel great, you know, getting off to such a good start here.

PAUL CASEY: I’ve got nothing to lose this week. So I’m trying to put myself in a position to win this golf event. I believe I got to be Top 4 to seal a place for next week and there are Top-10 situations, depending on what other guys do.

So, I’d love to be part of that. You know, I don’t need to get too far ahead, don’t need to start thinking about that on a Thursday. For me it’s focusing on today and I did a very good job of that, actually. It was quite — I really went out there very relaxed and — yeah, I didn’t get too caught up in sort of worrying about FedEx stuff.

Because I’m not on the bubble, quite a way outside, I don’t need to worry about it quite as much. Maybe the group behind me, the 125, Camilo, Ernie and Beckman?

I could sort of — you know, I guess Camilo was a couple over through sort of 5, 6 holes this morning so I got nothing to lose. I’m going to go ahead and enjoy and put myself in a position to win it.

Q. It’s been a little bit since you really contended. So can you talk a little bit about your mindset this week and is it hard to get back into that?

PAUL CASEY: It has been hard to get back into that although I really enjoyed it — I really started getting into the flow of things after the eagle on 5.

I made a birdie on — I now just focused on trying to make birdies on the latter half of my back-9. Even possibly first few holes today I was still, you know, where is the golf ball going to go. Is it going to draw the way I’m sort of wanting it to draw, whatever the mindset is?

Last few holes today it was very much, all right, what do I have to do here to make birdie, taking it one shot at a time but trying to get myself as far up the leaderboard as possible which is what I’ve always been used to doing.

When you’re not doing — when you’re not used to doing it like I haven’t been used to doing it in the last few months, you don’t know what you need to do to sort of ignite that feeling again.

So, it was great. I mean I actually walked off with sort of 5-under feeling like I probably should have shot better. I’m not going to beat myself up or get frustrated about it. I did an excellent job I think just to, you know, staying in the present which is what I need to do and that’s how I play my best golf is when I stay in the present.

JOEL SCHUCHMANN: You’ve had some injuries problems, turf toe, which is, I guess, the diagnosis. Maybe just go through a little bit about how that’s affected maybe your golf swing and kind of maybe how that’s kind — when it started and how it’s progressed.

PAUL CASEY: Yeah. It started — I think I noticed it back in May. Didn’t know what it was. It was a swollen joint of the right sort of foot where the big toe sort of — the knuckle there.

I was in Arizona at the time. I thought I had been bitten by a spider or some “creepy crawly”. Didn’t pay too much attention to it.

It persisted. Wondered whether it was a fracture or something like that. Basically went through the whole series of what it was, x-rays, blood tests for gout, all sorts of things, and wasn’t until I got an MRI not that long ago that we found out it was turf toe.

Actually what I was doing up to that point wasn’t helping what I had and in hindsight I should have rested it there and then but, you know, wasn’t aware of it and tried to play through that, which was a mistake.

What it’s done to the golf game, most importantly the swing, I’ve taken — try to take the weight off my toes and the weight has gone back on the heels which is really bad position to be in.

Then can’t actually fire off my right foot either. I can’t put any pressure down into the ground from the right foot and sort of the transition where right foot should roll to the left side and up on to the toe, I can’t do that.

So I kind of sort of flinch at the ball, right foot and the right sort of knee as a very sharp movement now sort of out. The best way to describe it, the right knee should move towards the left knee but mine doesn’t, sort of wants to move straight out to take the pressure off that right foot.

It results in making it almost impossible to hit longer clubs, especially drivers and 3-woods. I mean it’s sort of in a very stuck position coming into the golf ball. I’ve been sort of flicking at it, try to control it. You can’t do it with high clubhead speed.

So, yeah, I mean it’s sort of ruined my golf swing for the last couple of months. You know, now knowing what it is, it’s strapped up, I’ve got to come and play. We’re doing anti-inflammatories. I was on Prednisone, all sorts of things to try and cure it as quick as we can.

Rest is the thing I should be doing the most which is why I won’t hit any golf balls this afternoon, straight back to the hotel.

It’s getting better. I noticed a vast improvement at Bridgestone and sort of bottom of the pack with the guys who made the cut last week at the PGA. Again, it’s getting better so — I’m excited about it and I’d love to play next week and that’s the goal and try and win this week and, if I don’t, I get a nice rest period. The rest of the year could salvage what has been a very disappointing season so far.

JOEL SCHUCHMANN: Okay.

Q. Was this the most fun you had on a golf course in awhile?

PAUL CASEY: Yes. And hopefully tomorrow, Saturday and Sunday are even better.

Q. Obviously a good start. You talked a little about that, position for the rest of the week, really.

PAUL CASEY: Yeah. I mean looking at past results here, what did Arjun win it with, 20-under? That’s got to be about the same number, I would think, this week.

I didn’t play last year, I played a couple years ago. As far as I know the golf course hasn’t changed. It’s great. I really enjoy this golf course.

But I think you’re going to have to keep going low. The goal is — my caddy said 5-under everyday is sort of the goal. We focus on it one round at a time and one shot at a time and, yeah, today was a very good start to that but tomorrow I’m going to have to forget about the score.

I’m sure I’m going to tee it up late in the afternoon and somebody already is going to be 8, 9, 10-under par. I’m going to have to go out there and keep repeating what I’m doing.

Q. Did you guys all — you know, you and Padraig and Justin are all sort of the same situation. Did y’all talk about that at all?

PAUL CASEY: No, we didn’t. Never came up. I think because we’re so far out of it that, you know, we’ve all got to play very well to make it. I’m not sure we would anyway.

No. It was very nice to walk off my last hole today and have my two playing partners saying good playing today, which I haven’t heard in awhile.

JOEL SCHUCHMANN: Great Paul. Thanks, appreciate it.

Transcript courtesy of ASAP Sports.

Paul is looking forward to the challenge of this week’s USPGA at Atlanta Athletic Club and feels the course and set-up may suit his game.

“From what I have seen of the golf course so far, it looks like a long-hitter’s golf course. The USPGA is a very different set-up from the other majors we get and it’s one that suits my game, I think.

“So I’d like to build on last year’s performance. Whistling Straits was enjoyable but this is completely different. We’ve gone from the shores of Lake Wisconsin to the heat of Atlanta, Georgia.

“So it’s very different, but something nonetheless I’m going to have fun with this week.”

With commitments to both Tours it’s been a long season for Paul which has been made tougher by having to fight with a turf-toe issue for two months. He has been playing with a stiff, carbon-fiber insert in his right shoe, his foot is taped up and he’s been taking anti-inflammatories and icing the foot after each round.

JOHNS CREEK, GA – AUGUST 08: Paul Casey of England signs autographs during a practice round prior to the start of the 93rd PGA Championship at the Atlanta Athletic Club on August 8, 2011 in Johns Creek, Georgia. (Photo by Andrew Redington/Getty Images)

Paul is paired with Lucas Glover at the WGC-Championships Bridgestone Invitational this week. Paul has a good record at Firestone with two top-10s including a tie for fourth in 2006.

Paul has been suffering through a ‘turf toe’ injury for over a month. Unfortunately, it’s an injury that is going to linger as long as he plays, and therefore, he will have to fight through the pain when he practices and plays. He is getting treatment on a day-to-day basis and is hopeful that this can reduce the pain and inflammation so he can play the way he is capable of playing. Paul commented, “I had an MRI done because it was so painful, now that I know what it is, I can get it fixed.”

I’m very much looking forward to the Open Championship at Royal St. George’s, it’s a tough course but I’m very going into it determined to do well. I used to love playing there when I was a kid, the fairways are very difficult to hit so tee shots are very important. I’ve not been there recently so I’ll be taking a recce beforehand with my coach Peter Kostis. I think it’s important to play as many practice rounds as possible just before the tournament because the course will be in pretty much ‘ready to play’ shape which you can learn a lot from.

It doesn’t get any bigger than Open week and winning would mean everything, I’m not sure I’m able to properly explain how much it would mean. Of all the majors it’s the one I’d love to win the most.

The last few weeks I’ve been working extremely hard on my game, with Peter we’ve been concentrating on a lot of swing stuff and also trying to increase my repertoire of shots and then taking that onto the course.

Playing a links course good ball-striking is always a must, even if the conditions are good you have something like 100 different options on every single shot. The secret will be pin-point accuracy on every shot, simple as that. I’ll also be trying to stay focused with a good attitude, you are always going to get some horrible bounces and the occasional 100-foot putt, you just have to do whatever it takes to get a good score.

I’ve got a couple of bottles of Dom Perignon at home and I can’t imagine anything better than drinking them from the Claret Jug!

Cheers,
Paul.

The second major of the year, the US Open starts today at Congressional Country Club in Maryland. The last couple of months have been frustrating, the season started OK, it was a great result to win in Bahrain but actually I didn’t feel as if I was playing brilliant golf by any means. The ball-striking was a bit off. I’ve worked very hard the last couple of months, but if anything I’ve gone backwards. And I’ve really struggled with confidence. Wentworth was particularly disappointing. After Wentworth I took a couple of weeks off and spent time with my coach, Peter Kostis working on grip, alignment, posture, making sure they’re all in the place, that sort of thing.

All Majors are special, and when people ask me what’s the best I’ve ever playe,d the Friday at the US Open in 2007 has to be right up there, the average round that day was 77 and I shot a 66. Hopefully memories of that round and the hard work I’ve put in will pay off this week.

(Photo by Ross Kinnaird/Getty Images)