England's Paul Casey withdraws from 2022 Masters due to injury

Golf fans received multiple pieces of positive news ahead of the ongoing Masters tournament. 

Five-time Masters champion Tiger Woods announced Tuesday he planned to play at Augusta National Golf Club roughly 14 months after he nearly lost his leg and even more in a horrific car accident. He has since started his opening round, while reigning champion Hideki Matsuyama also teed off on Thursday even though he's been dealing with neck and shoulder pain that caused him to withdraw from last weekend's Valero Texas Open.

England's Paul Casey wasn't so lucky. 

Per Todd Kelly of USA Today (h/t Yahoo Sports), Casey withdrew from the Masters on Thursday morning with an undisclosed injury. 

"Due to injury, Paul Casey has officially withdrawn from the Masters Tournament prior to the start of his first round," tournament organizers explained in a brief statement. 

As J. Bryan Randall noted for Augusta's WFXG, the Associated Press reports Casey had struggled with back spasms throughout the week. According to Dave Shedloski of Golf Digest, the 44-year-old last competed at the Players Championship in March and has since been slowed by back troubles. Casey played the Par 3 contest with his son at Augusta National on Wednesday and also took part in practices ahead of Thursday's decision. 

Casey is No. 25 in the official world rankings and has played the Masters 15 times. His best finish was a tie for fourth in 2016.