Will Zalatoris withdrew during the third round of BMW Championship on Saturday due to a back injury.
Zalatoris shot a 3-under-par 139 over the first two rounds to enter play on Saturday five strokes behind leader Adam Scott of Australia.
He was four shots back when he teed off on the fourth hole Saturday. He gingerly walked down the fairway and finished the hole, however attempts to stretch himself out prior to the fifth hole did not go well and he opted to withdraw from the tournament.
“Will tweaked his lower back during a shot on the 3rd hole today,” said a statement from his manager, Allen Hobbs. “After getting it worked on and the pain not subsiding, he felt that it was best to withdraw from the BMW Championship so he can work with his trainer the next few days to get the inflammation to calm down.”
Hobbs said Zalatoris would be in Atlanta for the Tour Championship, the final leg of the season-ending FedEx Cup playoff, next weekend at East Lake Golf Club.
Will Zalatoris has withdrawn in the third round @BMWChamps with a back injury. pic.twitter.com/mwV9SC06SF
— PGA TOUR (@PGATOUR) August 20, 2022
Zalatoris is coming off recording his maiden PGA Tour title this past weekend. He defeated Austrian Sepp Straka in a playoff on Sunday to win the FedEx St. Jude Championship in Memphis, Tenn.
Zalatoris, who turned 26 on Tuesday, is ranked ninth in the world.
He entered the week No. 1 in the FedEx Cup standings and is projected to stand at No. 2 behind Scottie Scheffler ahead of the Tour Championship.
Zalatoris is well-known for several close misses at major championships early in his career. He finished second at the 2021 Masters before he was technically a full PGA Tour member.
This year, he finished second at the PGA Championship by losing to Justin Thomas in a playoff and tied for second at the U.S. Open.
–Field Level Media
