Rory McIlroy withdraws from Bay Hill with back spasm as golf enters a big stretch

ORLANDO, Fla. (AP) - Rory McIlroy withdrew from the third round of the Arnold Palmer Invitational on Saturday when he felt muscle spasms in his back that were not going away.

The spasms were not thought be to serious enough to keep him out of The Players Championship next week where McIlroy is the defending champion. He was headed to his home in south Florida.

"While warming up in the gym this morning, I felt a small twinge in my back. As I started hitting balls on the range before the round, it worsened and developed into muscle spasms in my lower back," McIlroy said in a statement to the PGA Tour.

"Unfortunately, I'm not able to continue and have to withdraw," he said. "I was excited to compete this weekend. I wish the Arnold Palmer Invitational a great finish and look forward to being back next year."

It was his first significant issue with his back since the Tour Championship in 2023, which he played with discomfort and tied for fourth in the FedEx Cup finale. He played twice more in Ireland and England before going 4-1 to lead Europe to another Ryder Cup victory.

McIlroy is approaching a big stretch in golf that culminates with the first major of the year at the Masters on April 9-12, with McIlroy as the defending champion. He won last year to become only the sixth player with the career Grand Slam.

McIlroy withdrew about 30 minutes before his tee time. He was warming up on the range when he realized the spasm were not going away in the warm weather at Bay Hill.

It was only the third time McIlroy has been forced to withdraw from a tournament. He left the Nedbank Golf Challenge in 2009 with a flu virus and food poisoning, and he withdrew from the Honda Classic in the middle of the second round in 2013, first citing a sore wisdom tooth and a week later apologizing by saying his head was not in the right place.

Bay Hill was his fifth tournament of the year - two in Dubai, and a pair of signature events at Pebble Beach and Riviera. McIlroy played Augusta National just over a week ago for the first time since he won the Masters. Earlier this week, he teamed with his father to win the Seminole Pro-Member in south Florida.