Tiger Woods, who seemed to be in serious discomfort and pain during a rain-soaked Saturday at the Masters, withdrew from the tournament due to a foot injury before Round 3 resumed Sunday morning at Augusta National Golf Club.
In a statement posted to his social media account Sunday, Woods said he aggravated a previous plantar fasciitis injury in his right foot, the same injury that caused the five-time Masters champion to withdraw from the Hero World Challenge, an unofficial event he hosts in the Bahamas, in February.
Woods, 47 years-of-age, was limping noticeably as he played the majority of the first eight holes of the third round in a downpour Saturday. Woods was 6-over par through his first seven completed holes of the third round. He was 9-over through 43 holes, which was dead last among the 54 players who made the 36-hole cut, and 22 strokes behind leader Brooks Koepka.
Woods faced the daunting prospect of finishing the 17th hole and playing 28 additional holes Sunday.
It is the second time in the past year that Woods has been forced to withdraw from a major championship because of injury. In May, he pulled out of the PGA Championship at Southern Hills Country Club in Tulsa, Oklahoma, after posting his worst score in the event, a 9-over 79 in the third round.
After starting the third round on the second nine Saturday, Woods shot back-to-back double bogeys on holes 15 and 16 after putting two balls in the water. It was the first time in the 15-time major champion’s legendary career that he recorded consecutive double bogeys in the Masters and only the fourth such instance in a major championship.
Play was suspended at 3:15 p.m. ET on Saturday after heavy rainfall left water pooling on greens. Woods had just hit his second shot on the 17th hole, his eighth hole of the round. He was limping badly even while taking only a few steps from his bag to his ball in the fairway.
For the second straight year at the Masters, Woods struggled in the elements on the weekend. He barely made the cut on the number Saturday, it moved to 3-over after his good friend Justin Thomas had bogeys on each of the last two holes and missed the cut. It was Woods’ 23rd consecutive made cut at Augusta National, which tied Gary Player and Fred Couples for the longest streak in the tournament’s history.
Last year, after Woods made his return to competitive golf from a 508-day layoff after he sustained serious injuries in a car wreck in February 2021, he posted consecutive scores of 6-over 78 in each of his last two rounds, his worst scores in the Masters.
Woods suffered serious injuries to his right leg, foot, and ankle. He played in only a trio of major championships last year, finishing 47th at the Masters and missing the cut at the 150th Open Championship at St. Andrews. He tied for 45th at the Genesis Invitational at Riviera Country Club outside Los Angeles in February.
Since the wreck, Woods has repeatedly said he would only compete in the majors and one or two other events. The next major, the PGA Championship, is scheduled for May 18-21 at Oak Hill Country Club in Rochester, New York. Woods has not said whether he intends to play in that event.
