Oblique strain sidelines Woods mid-event

JERSEY CITY, N.J. — Masters champion Tiger Woods withdrew Friday from the opening FedEx Cup playoffs event with what he described as a mild oblique strain.

It was the first time Woods has pulled out in the middle of a tournament since the Dubai Desert Classic in February 2017, two months before he had a fourth surgery on his back to fuse his lower spine.

“Due to a mild oblique strain that led to pain and stiffness, I have to withdraw from The Northern Trust,” Woods said in a statement released by the PGA Tour. “I went for treatment early Friday morning, but unfortunately I’m still unable to compete.”

Woods, playing in only his second tournament since the U.S. Open in June, opened with a 4-over 75 on a Liberty National course so soft that only one other player had a higher score. It was his second-worst score in 89 rounds in the FedEx Cup playoffs.

He has said all year that there are days when his back doesn’t feel as limber. In March, he passed on the Arnold Palmer Invitational on the road to the Masters because of lingering soreness in his neck.

He said he is hopeful to play next week in the BMW Championship at Medinah, where he won two of his PGA Championship titles.

If he plays, Woods likely would need to move back into the top 30 in the FedEx Cup to have a chance to defend his title at the Tour Championship. It was last year at East Lake that he capped off his comeback from four back surgeries with his first victory in five years.

That comeback included a busy schedule to get back among the elite in the game.

Woods had played only 17 official tournaments after his first back surgery in April 2014, and the fusion surgery was as much about quality of life as golf. If he doesn’t make it to the Chicago area next week for the BMW Championship, he will have played just 11 times this season — five times since winning the Masters.