"I’m going down swinging no matter what" - Will Zalatoris reveals his surgeon asked him to consider retirement amidst recent injury struggles
Will Zalatoris qualified for the Masters 2024 thanks to his 31st place in the world rankings. However, a few months earlier, it seemed impossible that he would participate in the Masters due to a delicate back injury.
It was also during the Masters in 2023 that Will Zalatoris' injury worsened and the player had to withdraw from the event and undergo surgery within hours. According to Zalatoris, his surgeon even recommended retiring from golf, something the player did not even consider.
Zalatoris was quoted as saying (via Golf.com):
"My surgeon brought up retirement at one point. I laughed because I'm like 'I don't care if you have to put 15 metal screws in me... that's not going to happen, sorry doc. I know you want me to be as healthy as I can, but I'm going down swinging no matter what'."
Will Zalatoris was out of competitive golf from April to December 2023. He returned during the Hero World Challenge thanks to a sponsors exemption given to him by Tiger Woods and proved himself ready to return to official tournaments.
How was Will Zalatoris' season before the Masters 2024?
Will Zalatoris has played seven tournaments during the 2024 PGA Tour season. He started at the Sony Open in Hawaii where he suffered one of his two cuts so far this year. He then finished T34 at The American Express with a score of 18 under.
Zalatoris finished T13 at the Farmers Insurance Open with a score of 8 under and two weeks later he had his best finish of the season so far, T2 at The Genesis Invitational.
Zalatoris played at Riviera with another sponsor exemption granted again by Tiger Woods, but he more than made the most of it, posting a score of 14 under, three strokes behind the champion Hideki Matsuyama.
Two weeks later, Zalatoris again finished strong at the Arnold Palmer Invitational, where he placed T4 with a score of 7 under. He did not fare as well next at the TPC Sawgrass and missed the cut at The Players Championship.
Zalatoris' last event before the Masters was the Houston Open where he finished T74 with a score of 4 over.