Will Zalatoris was forced to withdraw after eight holes in the third round of the Rocket Mortgage Classic with a reported hip injury.
Zalatoris, 27, told CBS Sports reporter Amanda Balionis after walking off the course that he felt a ‘pop’ in his hip and noted it was on his ‘good side’.
The PGA Tour star was 3-over par thru eight holes when he walked out of the tournament.
Zalatoris bogeyed the 2nd before making a birdie at the 3rd.
But he then bogeyed the next two holes before adding a double-bogey seven at the 7th.
Zalatoris did make a birdie at the par-3 8th but he was clearly in too much to continue and decided to shake hands with his playing partners as he trudged off the back of the green.
He was 4-under par for the tournament at the time when he withdrew at Detroit Golf Club.
That was well off the pace.
Akshay Bhatia and Aaron Rai remain out in front thru 54 holes at 17-under par.
Both players carded rounds of 68.
They hold a narrow one-shot lead over Cameron Young (67) and Cam Davis (66).
It marks the second time Zalatoris has been forced to WD from a PGA Tour event in two months.
The last time came due to a back injury at the CJ Cup Byron Nelson in April.
The withdrawal comes as another major blow for Zalatoris, especially having undergone a microdiscetomy in April 2023 for herniated disks in his back.
Zalatoris had been playing for four straight weeks.
He’s had just three top-10 finishes all season, highlighted by a tie for second at the Genesis Invitational and a T9 at The Masters.
Zalatoris, who won the 2022 FedEx St Jude Championship, has endured a injury-plagued two seasons on the PGA Tour.
He sat out the rest of the 2023 season after undergoing surgery and he has played in just 15 events so far this season.
Zalatoris is currently ranked 42nd in the world.
