Will Zalatoris out for season after withdrawing from Masters, undergoing surgery

PGA Tour winner Will Zalatoris announced Monday that he will miss the remainder of the season after undergoing back surgery.

“After careful consideration and seeking multiple medical opinions, I underwent a successful microdiscectomy on Saturday,” Zalatoris said on Instagram. “As much as I hate not being able to play the rest of this season, I am happy that I am already seeing the benefits of the procedure. Playing and living in pain is not fun. I look forward to making a full recovery and seeing everyone in the fall. Thank you to Dr. Michael Duffy, Dr. Tom Kelton, and their respective teams for getting me fixed. And, of course, thank you to everyone for the support and the messages. I look forward to getting back to 100%.”

A microdiscectomy is a surgery that repairs a ruptured or damaged lumbar spine disc. Tiger Woods has had no fewer than four microdiscectomy procedures in the last decade.

Zalatoris withdrew ahead of the first round of the Masters last Thursday due to a nagging back injury.

He missed the last four months of 2022 after suffering two herniated discs in his back, and two weeks ago, he battled a stomach virus at the WGC-Match Play that caused him to lose seven pounds in a week.

The 2022 FedEx St. Jude Championship winner returned to competition at the beginning of the year and has since made seven starts but only earned one top-10. He finished inside the top 10 in three of the four majors a year ago, including a playoff loss at the PGA Championship and a tie for second at the U.S. Open.