The chances of Tiger Woods making an appearance at the PGA Championship at Oak Hill next month, or any other event this year for that matter, just took a major hit.
Woods’ team announced on Twitter Wednesday that he underwent a “subtalar fusion procedure to his post-traumatic arthritis from his previous talus fracture.”
“It was performed by Dr. Martin O’Malley at HSS Sports Medicine Institute in New York City,” the statement reads. “He has determined the surgery to be successful. Tiger is currently recovering and looks forward to beginning his rehabilitation.”
According to the website FootcareMD.org, a subtalar fusion procedure takes the two bones forming the subtalar joint, the talus bone and calcaneus (heel) bone, and fuses them together. The joint allows for side-to-side movement of the foot and ankle, so fusing it means a recovering patient would require getting accustomed to walking on uneven surfaces.
After surgery, the patient’s foot must be non-weight-bearing for six weeks and in a boot or cast for 8-12 weeks.
Woods withdrew during the third round of the Masters two weeks ago. It was just his second event of the season and fifth overall since returning from a major car accident in early 2021 that nearly forced the amputation of his right leg.
At the time of the withdrawal, Woods cited a recurrence of his plantar fasciitis that forced him to miss his Hero World Challenge last December. Videos circulated on social media of Woods struggling to walk at Augusta National.
Before bowing out, Woods had made the cut, earning him a share of the record for all-time consecutive made-cuts at the Masters with Fred Couples and Gary Player at 23.
Woods also withdrew after making the cut at the 2022 PGA Championship. On Masters Sunday, Jason Day said that Woods had told him the reason Woods couldn’t continue at Southern Hills was because a screw punched through his skin.