Tiger Woods will be out for four to six weeks after undergoing surgery on his left knee.
The 32-year-old, who finished second to Trevor Immelman at the Masters at Augusta last week, is now unlikely to defend the Wachovia Championship and his appearance at The Players Championship, which begins on May 8, is also in jeopardy.
It is the same knee which required two previous operations, the first to remove a benign tumour in 1994 and then arthroscopic surgery in December 2002.
Woods, who should be fit to play at the US Open in Torrey Pines in June, told his official website: "I made the decision to deal with the pain and schedule the surgery for after the Masters.
"The upside is that I have been through this process before and know how to handle it.
"I look forward to working through the rehabilitation process and getting back to action as quickly as I can."
