Will Zalatoris will miss the entire 2027 PGA Tour season, the 30-year-old announced Wednesday. Speaking at the media day for the Austin Championship, a FedEx Cup Fall tournament, Zalatoris made it known that he will undergo spinal-fusion surgery in November to correct lingering back issues.
"I've been through four years of hell, so it's good to have something that will hopefully correct it," he explained. "It's not something you want to do, but when you have three tour physical therapists tell you it needs to be done at some time, you go ahead and do it."
Zalatoris will play in the Austin Championship, scheduled for Nov. 12-15 at the Omni Barton Creek Resort, in what will be his first competitive start since the Texas Open in early April. He has played only four tournaments on the PGA Tour in 2026 after dealing with a torn labrum for much of the year.
However, Zalatoris' absence has largely been due to a nagging back issue. The scheduled procedure will be his third major back surgery since 2023, when he had a microdiscectomy. Two years later, in 2025, Zalatoris required a disc replacement.
"It's all connected together, and I just want to get it fixed," he said. "I can't promise anybody anything because of what I've been through. I'm the oldest 30-year-old you will ever meet."
Starting his PGA Tour career in 2021, Zalatoris immediately jumped onto the scene by making waves at major championships. In his first 10 major starts as a professional, the wiry right-hander collected seven top-10 finishes, including runner-up results at the 2021 Masters, 2022 PGA Championship and 2022 U.S. Open.
Zalatoris claimed his maiden PGA Tour victory in the 2022 postseason with a playoff win at the St. Jude Championship. It remains his lone victory on the circuit. The next week, he was forced to withdraw from the BMW Championship due to a back injury.
"I've been in contact with the Tour, which has been great," Zalatoris said. "It looks like I can come back in 2028 and play in the Challenger Series if everything works like it should."
