Will Zalatoris walls off after tees off the first during Round 1 of the Rocket Mortgage Classic at the Detroit Golf Club in Detroit. Junfu Han / USA TODAY NETWORK

Will Zalatoris withdraws from Tour Championship due to back injury

By Victor Barbosa | Last updated Aug 23, 2022 10:35 AM ET

After a second-place finish at the 2021 Masters, a second-place finish at the 2022 PGA Championship and yet another runner-up ending at the 2022 U.S. Open, Will Zalatoris finally broke through with his first victory on the PGA Tour at the FedEx St. Jude Championship in mid-August.

Hoping to keep his momentum going in the upcoming Tour Championship, the 26-year-old now will not have that chance due to a back injury.

Will Zalatoris is a WD from the TOUR Championship with a back injury. pic.twitter.com/HlC5pDsJWX
— PGA TOUR Communications (@PGATOURComms) August 23, 2022

Not only has Zalatoris come in second place in three major events in the last 16 months, but they have all come in excruciating fashion. With a nine-under-par during the 2021 Masters, he finished just one stroke behind Hideki Matsuyama.

At the PGA Championship in May, he fell in a three-hole playoff to Justin Thomas. At the U.S. Open in June, Zalatoris tied with world No. 1 Scottie Scheffler behind the victor, Matt Fitzpatrick.

Victor Barbosa

Victor Barbosa is a passionate follower of MLB, the NBA and NFL, with a deep interest in Boston-area teams. He graduated from Springfield College -- The Birthplace of Basketball -- in 2013 with a degree in Communications-Sports Journalism. Previous bylines include FanSided, Heavy and Syracuse

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