Tiger Woods announced that he had back surgery earlier this week and will not play competitive golf again until early in 2016.
Woods, who made the announcement at tigerwoods.com, had microdiscectomy surgery on his back for the second time on Wednesday. The first came in March of 2014 and he didn’t play again until the end of July.
“This is certainly disappointing, but I’m a fighter,” Woods, who will be 40 in December, said in a statement. “I’ve been told I can make a full recovery, and I have no doubt that I will.
“I appreciate the fans’ concern and support. This is unfortunate, but these things happen. I’ve been injured before and played again. It won’t be any different this time.”
Dr. Charles Rich, who performed the surgery at the Park City Medical Center in Utah, said Woods had a “small disc fragment that was pinching his nerve” removed from his back.
Woods was discharged from the hospital Thursday night and plans to begin soft tissue treatment next week.
When Woods played at the Wyndham Championship late in August, he shot 64-65 on in the first two rounds and was in contention before faltering over the weekend. He complained of a hip injury and insisted his back was fine.
“It’s not my back, no,” Woods said at the time. “Just my hip.”
However, an examination to find the source of the discomfort determined that while Woods felt most of the pain in his hip, it actually originated in from his back.
Woods planned to open the 2015-16 season in the Frys.com Open at Silverado in Napa next month, followed by the Bridgestone America’s Golf Cup and Hero World Challenge, which benefits the Tiger Woods Foundation, but he will be unable to play in those tournaments.
