Tiger Woods announced that he will not participate in the upcoming Ryder Cup after withdrawing his name from consideration for the US Team, citing his rehabilitation from a back injury.
Woods, who hurt his back again in the PGA Championship, is being considered by team captain Tom Watson as one of the three wildcards for the US Ryder Cup team, but the former world No. 1 revealed that he will not be fit enough to compete in the prestigious team competition.
"While I greatly appreciate Tom thinking about me for a possible captain's pick, I must take myself out of consideration," Woods said via ESPN. "I've been told by my doctors and trainer that my back muscles need to be rehabilitated and healed. They've advised me not to play or practice now."
Woods, who is coming off a disappointing performance in the PGA Championship, said that he wanted to compete in the Ryder Cup, saying that the tournament has been one of the most important events for him.
"I'm extremely disappointed that I won't be ready for the competition. The U.S. team and the Ryder Cup mean too much to me not to be able to give it my best. I'll be cheering for the U.S. team. I think we have an outstanding squad going into the matches," Woods said.
The 14-time major champion, who has been struggling to regain his health since undergoing back surgery in March, will also miss a team event in Argentina in October along with corporate exhibition tournaments in Asia in November.
Mark Steinberg, Woods' agent, said that the 38-year-old will not return to action until the World Challenge that will take place from Dec. 4-7 in Orlando.
"We all saw that he was in pain," Steinberg said. "To me, the good news is that the residual effect of him playing the last few weeks has been muscular and not directly related to the surgical procedure that was done. He's going to come back at the World Challenge and we'll take it from there. He needs this time to rest and rehabilitate."
