Will Zlatoris, who has not played since late March after undergoing back surgery, said he is targeting a September return to the PGA Tour.
For the first time in the past two years, Zalatoris is pain-free, he said on ESPN’s “Matty & the Caddy” PGA Championship simulcast.
“No headache, no leg pain,” Zlatoris said. “This is the best I’ve ever felt. I feel great.”
Zalatoris, ranked No. 9 in the world, is the only player in the top 100 not to play in this week’s PGA Championship at Oak Hill Country Club in Rochester, New York.
A year ago, Zalatoris lost to Justin Thomas in a playoff for the 2022 PGA Championship at Southern Hills in Tulsa, Oklahoma. That wasn’t the only time he competed in a major championship last season; He tied for second at the US Open after facing eventual winner Matt Fitzpatrick of England.
Zlatoris, 26, went on to win his first PGA Tour title at the FedEx St. Jude, which is the first leg of the FedEx Cup qualifiers.
He withdrew from the next event, the BMW Championship, after two rounds. He sat out the Tour Championship due to a herniated disc in his back.
Zalatoris played six tournaments in early 2023 before withdrawing from WGC-Match Play and the Masters. The Monday after the Masters, he announced that he had undergone a microdiscectomy to treat his ailing back.
Zalatoris will not qualify for the FedEx Cup Playoffs after missing out due to injury, so the earliest he can return to the Tour is with the fall slate starting in mid-September.
Information from Reuters is included in this report.