Will Zalatoris Gets Back Surgery And Shuts It Down For 2023

Will Zalatoris announced on Monday that he will not play for the rest of 2023 after having surgery performed on his back this past Saturday. Zalatoris was expected to play in The Masters this past weekend but withdrew shortly before his tee time on Thursday.

Zalatoris said in a statement put out this morning:

“After careful consideration and seeking multiple medical opinions, I underwent a successful microdiscectomy on Saturday. As much as I hate not being able to play the rest of the season, I am happy that I am already seeing the benefits of the procedure.”

BREAKING: Will Zalatoris underwent surgery on Saturday and will miss the rest of the season. pic.twitter.com/tsjcM1zkXC

— Rick Gehman (@RickRunGood) April 10, 2023

Zalatoris received a lumbar microdiscectomy, which is a “minimally invasive” procedure that relieves pressure on a spinal nerve root by removing material that causes the pain. It removes a portion of the disc instead of the entire disc.

Zalatoris has fought back pain for much of his young career. In late 2023, he withdrew from the BMW Championship during the third round after suffering back troubles that ultimately had a physio come to examine him during the tournament. Coming off of his first PGA Tour win just a week before at the FedEx St. Jude, Zalatoris was paired with Scottie Scheffler and was one of the favorites to take home the FedEx Cup.

 

 

 

 

 

 

View this post on Instagram

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

A post shared by Will Zalatoris (@willzalatoris)

Zalatoris had two herniated discs and decided to ultimately shut it down for the year last season. He made some swing changes that helped alleviate pain in his back, but it appears a longer-term fix was necessary to save his career.

Cover Image Via SportingNews