Will Zalatoris has withdrawn from the 2022 BMW Championship in the third round after suffering a back injury, the PGA Tour announced on Saturday. The current leader in the FedEx Cup standings thanks to his breakthrough victory at the St. Jude Championship will be heading home early after experiencing back spasms on the third hole Saturday. A PGA Tour physiotherapist came onto the course to treat Zalatoris on the fifth tee before he ultimately made the decision to call it quits.
“Will tweaked his lower back during a shot on the third hole today,” Zalatoris’ agent said in a statement. “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. Will looks forward to playing next week in Atlanta.”
Zalatoris was 4 under for the tournament at the time of his withdrawal and only four strokes off the 36-hole leader Adam Scott. With Zalatoris’ departure from the tournament, the door has swung wide open for Scottie Scheffler to reclaim the top spot in the FedEx Cup ahead of next week’s Tour Championship.
This could prove to be crucial in the grand scheme of things with the FedEx Cup leader will enter the Tour Championship at 10 under and two strokes ahead of the nearest pursuer. With Zalatoris and FedEx Cup No. 3 Cameron Smith — who withdrew on Monday due to hip discomfort — gone for the weekend, the world No. 1 must be licking his chops.
It is not all bad news for Zalatoris despite the untimeliness of his injury. At the very worst, the Wake Forest product will drop to third in the FedEx Cup standings, which would put him at 7 under to begin the week at East Lake.
