Will Zalatoris’ Comeback Has Been a Painful Ordeal Despite Back Surgery Success; ‘Been a Grind’, Admits Golfer

Jun 28, 2024 | 12:25 AM EDT

Link Copied!

Getting back into the swing of things takes time after a hiatus, especially when the hiatus is caused by an injury. Who better than Will Zalatoris to understand the sentiments behind those words? The young golfer has been en route to recovery from an injury he sustained back in 2022. He pushed past the pain until he could no longer bear it, which led to his withdrawal from the 2023 Masters.

Consequently, the PGA Tour pro was away from the professional greens for over nine months and made his return to the professional golf scene at the 2023 Hero World Challenge. However, the return has not been easy. In an interview after the first round of the 2024 Rocket Mortgage Classic, he discussed how he’s been managing his back issue and navigating his comeback thus far.

The 2024 season has not been fairing well for the 27-year-old golfer. Zalatoris has participated in 15 events so far and has only found himself in the top 10 only thrice, one of which happened to be the T9 at the Masters. Alluding to the same, he said, “It’s been a grind this year to put it mildly.” He further added, “coming back from surgery, trying to integrate the changes, and I feel like I put one round together and then maybe kind of don’t have it another day.“

The last major, the US Open, proved a bitter pill to swallow for him. Failing to make the cut after finishing eight over par in the first two rounds was a clear disappointment. Talking along the lines of how he has been doing since the major, he said, “I put a lot of work in after the U.S. Open. I was less than pleased is probably the nicest way I can put it with my performance there.“

Article continues below this ad

To make matters worse, the one-time PGA Tour winner also had a few withdrawals this season. One was back in February from the Mexico Open, and another in May, as his injury pain reared its ugly head again, forcing Zalatoris to withdraw from the CJ Cup Byron Nelson. Thus, he might be looking to regain his momentum in the Rocket Mortgage Classic.

Article continues below this ad

On being asked about his first-round performance, which was pretty good with a score of 6 under 66, he responded with contentment, “Yeah, everything feels really good. I maybe need to hit some iron shots a little bit closer, but it helps when you make, I guess, three putts over 30 feet today.” Further reflecting on the satisfaction he got from putting, he said, ” I was just told I made 159 feet of putts, which definitely helps.”

Since the surgery, Zalatoris has been pretty mindful of the grind he put on the greens to have a smooth recovery. And things are looking up for Zalatoris’s health condition, according to the update he gave on his recovery at last week’s Travelers Championship.

How has the recovery been going for Will Zalatoris?

Article continues below this ad

After the Thursday round of the Travelers Championship, the 27-year-old spoke about his approach to recovery, which has been proving fruitful. The snippet from the interview was shared by the X handle, Underdog Golf. In the video, Zalatoris could be seen saying, “I think a lot early on this season I would play a tournament, need to take three, four days off, and now I’m able to just keep on going. So really, like, even though it’s nice and warm, that obviously helps with the back, but I think it’s just trying to find the right cadence of when I’m taking time off, and so far this stretch is the best I’ve felt.“Even though the one-time PGA Tour winner finished T42 at the Travelers Championship, the silver lining was his positive health update.

Zalatoris has also made some changes to his swing patterns since the surgery to enhance the recovery process. With this, he kind of has slid into comfort while swinging. But this comfort he feels has paid off, as his participation in the Rocket Mortgage Classic is his fourth consecutive event. With this, do you think that the one-time PGA Tour winner will be able to capitalize on the event?