It’s official: Tiger Woods will miss next month’s U.S. Open at Pinehurst No. 2.
Woods confirmed on his website that he will not be able to tee it up at the season’s second major as he continues to recover from March 31 microdiscectomy surgery to treat a pinched nerve in his back.
“Unfortunately, I won’t be there because I’m not yet physically able to play competitive golf,” Woods said. “I’d like to convey my regrets to the USGA leadership, the volunteers and the fans that I won’t be at Pinehurst. The U.S. Open is very important to me, and I know it’s going to be a great week. Despite missing the first two majors, and several other important tournaments, I remain very optimistic about this year and my future.”
This marks the second consecutive major that Woods has missed because of injury, and sixth overall since 2008. A three-time winner of the U.S. Open, he also missed the tournament at Congressional Country Club in 2011 while recovering from an Achilles injury.
Woods last teed it up March 9 in the final round of the WGC-Cadillac Championship, where he tied for 25th. In a blog post earlier this month, he noted that while he has resumed putting and chipping, he has yet to return to making full swings. In the same post, Woods reiterated that he hopes to return to competitive action this summer, “but I just don’t know when.”