Mike Weir massages his right elbow after teeing off on the 11th during Pro-Am day at the Canadian Open. (Darren Calabrese/The Canadian Press)

Mike Weir's preparation for the RBC Canadian Open has certainly been unique — Advil, ice and as little practice as possible.

The popular lefty from Bright's Grove, Ont., is being hampered by tendinitis in his right arm and had to cut his Wednesday pro-am round short. He walked off the St. George's Golf and Country Club course after 15 holes and received treatment in the PGA Tour's fitness trailer.

It won't keep him from making his first round tee time on Thursday afternoon.

"I can't see myself withdrawing," said Weir. "I mean, I'll play through it. I have next week off. Today in the pro-am, it was bothering me on every shot I hit and I thought it was a good time to take it easy.

"[The physical therapist] said it was a good thing you did that. He said don't hit any more shots today, just keep doing the ice and Advil and rest it."

The 40-year-old wore a band on the arm during his charity event on Monday and was only able to hit 20 or 30 practice shots on Tuesday.

The injury flared up during the second round of last week's British Open at St. Andrew's — a day that was so cold and windy Weir had to wear a tuque.

"The ground's so firm over there, it started acting up pretty good," said Weir. "It's still bothering me a little bit. I've been icing it and I thought it would be better."

The field at this year's Canadian Open is a little stronger than in years past. Eleven of the top-30 in the tour's FedExCup Standings have entered, including Paul Casey, Retief Goosen, Tim Clark, Camilo Villegas, Hunter Mahan and Luke Donald. Only eight of the top-30 participated last year.

The biggest star might end up being St. George's, which is holding the tournament for the first time since 1968.

Players have been raving about the Stanley Thompson layout after their practice rounds.

"This place is phenomenal," said Matt Bettencourt, who won last week's event in Reno.

Weir is another big fan of the course, but might not be able to throw his best at it. The timing of his injury couldn't be much worse.

"I haven't had a very good year," he said. "But I'm still very positive and I'm looking forward to finishing off the year strong. I can still make a good year of it.

"Hopefully, this doesn't hold me back too much."