PGA Tour Update: Stephan Jaeger’s Shock Valero Texas Open Exit Explored

It seems the year 2024 is not a lucky one for Jay Monahan and his circuit. The PGA Tour had been hit with many setbacks, as unfavorable environmental conditions played the villain for the same. Meanwhile, another problem that ran parallel to the issue of severe weather was the professionals pulling out of the various tournaments on the circuit. Unfortunately, it appears the upcoming event will also see a similar situation arise, courtesy of Stephan Jaeger.

An announcement was shared by PGA Tour Communications on their X handle (formerly Twitter) regarding the golfer. As per the tweet, the German pro will not be playing at the Valero Texas Open, which is set to kick off at TPC San Antonio.

Stephan Jaeger withdraws from the Valero Texas Open

Like any event on the circuit, the Valero Texas Open will also include a 144-player field and will kick off on April 4, Thursday. However, the last event before the first major of 2024 saw Stephan Jaeger, who emerged victorious at the 2024 Texas Children’s Houston Open beating Scottie Scheffler and Tony Finau, recently pulling out from the same.

The reason? Well, the Monahan-led circuit has not provided the cause for his WD, but the reason seems to be clear for any enthusiast in the community to see. Interestingly, Jaeger managed to get into the field for the upcoming Masters Tournament that will start off on the week following the Valero Texas Open through his first PGA Tour win. Thus, the golfer will probably be looking to rest for a week before teeing it off at the first major of the year.

However, Jaeger wasn’t the first to pull out of the event. Unfortunately, the 34-year-old was but one of the four athletes to withdraw from the upcoming tournament at TPC San Antonio including the likes of Matt Wallace, Scott Stallings, and Thomas Detry. They were, in turn, replaced by Trace Crowe, Blaine Hale, Jr., and Erik Barnes respectively. What’s more, Hayden Springer, the pro, and Bronson Burgoon will also play at the event in Texas through a sponsor exemption.

Sadly, it now appears the upcoming tournament, the Texas Valero Open, is set to experience a similar fate as the recently ended Valspar Championship. Interestingly, the event had witnessed itself being dubbed as a failure of sorts after it saw many golfers withdrawing from the same owing to various reasons.

Unfortunate WDs plague the Valspar Championship

A total of 8 professionals, like Stephan Jaeger at the Valero Texas Open, marked their exit from the final stop of the PGA Tour’s Florida Swing including the likes of J.B. Holmes, Aaron Wise, Garrick Higgo, Erik Barnes, Camilo Villegas, Justin Lower, Pierceson Coody, and David Bradshaw. Curiously, three of these WDs (Barnes, Villegas, and Lower) came about after the second round, with scores of 5-over par 76, 77(+6), and 79(+9) respectively.

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Coming to the other professionals, Coody and Bradshaw announced their intention to pull out after the second round was suspended due to bad light. Meanwhile, the other three did so before the start of the tournament itself, just like Stephan Jaeger did for the Valero Texas Open. Anyhow, the golfer pulling out of the event sure came as a surprise to many in the community, especially after witnessing the golfer win the Texas Children’s Houston Open at the Memorial Park Golf Course.

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