Will Zalatoris announces back surgery and a 2027 break

“I’m the oldest 30-year-old person you’ll ever meet,” Will Zalatoris said, describing the ordeal he has been going through. He is 30 and currently sits 610th in the world rankings. Back problems are hampering the career of a golfer who quickly established himself among the leading players in the majors, though he has yet to win one. “I’ve been through four years of hell, so it’s good to have something that hopefully alleviates it,” he told the press. He also said he could promise nothing after what he had endured, before repeating that he was “the oldest 30-year-old person” anyone could meet.

Zalatoris stopped playing in April and is preparing to return at the Austin Championship. He has announced that he will undergo spinal fusion surgery at the end of November. He says the procedure will force him to miss the entire 2027 PGA Tour season. It will be his third major back operation, following a microdiscectomy in 2023 and an artificial disc replacement in 2025. “It’s not something you want to do, but when three Tour physios tell you it needs to happen at some point, you just do it,” he added.

His career had reached a high point at the 2021 Masters: he finished second, narrowly missing out on becoming the tournament’s first debutant winner since 1979. The upcoming procedure marks another turning point in a career disrupted by back problems.