(Reuters) – Tiger Woods has announced that he will not be participating in the upcoming 50th edition of The Players Championship. This decision was confirmed when his name did not appear on the field list that was released after the deadline on Friday.
Woods had expressed his intention to compete once a month on the PGA Tour this year, but his plans were derailed by illness, resulting in his early exit from his season debut three weeks ago.
The 15-times major champion now has three remaining opportunities to play competitively before the April 11-14 Masters, the first major championship of the season.
If Woods decides to participate in another event before the Masters, his options include the Valspar Championship in Palm Harbor, Florida from March 21-24, the Texas Children’s Houston Open from March 28-31, and the Valero Texas Open in San Antonio from April 4-7.
Woods has previously finished in a share of second place at the Valspar Championship in 2018, while placing third at the 1996 Texas Open. He has never competed in the Houston Open.
During his season debut at Riviera three weeks ago, Woods struggled with back spasms in the first round and had to withdraw from the second round due to illness while on the seventh hole.
His last PGA Tour appearance was at the Masters last April, where he withdrew before completing the third round due to plantar fasciitis.
Following ankle surgery and a lengthy recovery period, Woods returned to professional golf at the end of November in an unofficial PGA Tour event.
The Players Championship is scheduled to take place from March 14-17 at TPC Sawgrass. Defending champion Scottie Scheffler is among the 144-player field, which includes nine former title holders.
(Reporting by Frank Pingue in Toronto; Editing by Ken Ferris)
