Ryan Fox shocked the golf world with his decision to withdraw from the 2026 Players Championship. Only hours before the tournament, it was announced that Fox, who was in terrific form before the Players, would not be able to participate due to illness. The PGA Tour did not reveal the reason for the withdrawal at the time, raising concerns about what happened to Fox.
Eventually, the World No. 44 discussed his withdrawal through the caption of an Instagram post featuring a photo of himself in a hospital bed. Fox described the reason, stating that he was taken down on Tuesday owing to kidney pain. It was later diagnosed that the golfer had kidney stones, which needed to be removed surgically. He even sounded disappointed, noting that this was not what he had anticipated for the entire week in Florida.
The caption of the Instagram post further read,
“Not exactly the week I had planned here @theplayers. Unfortunately some kidney stones took me down on Tuesday night and then had to be dealt with surgically this afternoon. Devastated to miss out on such an amazing event, hoping to have a quick recovery and be back at it soon. #foxtracker”
Along with the announcement of his withdrawal, the PGA Tour statement also disclosed that David Ford, one of the tournament’s reserve golfers, will be a part of the 2026 Players Championship. Ford later replaced Fox in his tee groups for the first two rounds, and after the first day, he is currently tied for 82nd position with a score of 3 over par.
When did Ryan Fox inform the PGA Tour of his withdrawal?
Since the publishing of Fox’s announcement about his kidney stone issue starting on Tuesday, there have been questions about why his withdrawal was delayed. There has been confusion about whether the PGA Tour or the golfer himself caused the delay. One of the PGA Tour’s spokespersons recently revealed the situation regarding the withdrawal delay, noting that the circuit was told on Thursday morning.
Ryan Fox, who was suffering from tremendous agony, may not have been at the track on time, resulting in the delay. The circuit’s representative also indicated that as soon as the circuit receives notice of a withdrawal, they promptly adjust the official procedures. According to Golf Monthly, this spokesperson stated,
“Once the player informs Competitions about the WD, there is little to no delay with that WD getting processed and the first alternate informed. Ryan Fox informed the PGA Tour of his WD on Thursday morning, with the WD immediately processed per the Tour’s policy at 7:56 am. The WD was made public a few minutes later.”
The next tournament Ryan Fox is scheduled to be a part of is the 2026 Valspar Championship, which will kick off next week from March 29 at Cooperhead Golf Course.
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