PONTE VEDRA BEACH, Florida, (Reuters) – Tiger Woods’s woes continued yesterday when he pulled out of the Players Championship after completing six holes of his final round, citing a painful neck.
Playing only his third event since his private life unravelled at the end of last year amid allegations of marital infidelities, the American did not appear in discomfort when he consulted with an official after a wayward drive at the seventh before quitting one shot later.
The world number one was two over for the day and two under for the tournament when he withdrew. He shook hands with compatriot and playing partner Jason Bohn before leaving the course on a golf cart, continually flexing his right hand.
“I’ve been playing with a bad neck for quite a while,” Woods, 34, told reporters. “I’ve been playing through it. I can’t play through it any more.
“I’m having a hard time with the pain. There’s tingling down my fingers, on the right side. They want me to go get a picture on it (the neck) next week.
“I might have a bulging disk,” added Woods, who missed the cut for only the sixth time as a professional at last week’s Quail Hollow Championship.