Masters favorite Dustin Johnson suffers back injury, manager says
Dustin Johnson is now iffy to compete in the 2017 Masters. The overall favorite to win the tournament suffered a back injury after falling off some stairs at his rental home, according to his manager.
“At roughly 3:00 p.m. today, Dustin took a serious fall on a staircase in his Augusta rental home,” David Winkle said in a statement to Golf Digest. “He landed very hard on his lower back and is now resting, although quite uncomfortably. He has been advised to remain immobile and begin a regimen of anti-inflammatory medication and icing, with the hope of being able to play tomorrow.”
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Johnson was listed 5/1 to win the tournament this week after winning his last three events in a row. If he is unable to go, Jordan Spieth would become the favorite at 13/2 with Rory McIlroy not far behind at 8/1, though those odds would likely change.
Johnson would be just the fourth golfer to miss the Masters while being ranked No. 1 in the world.
Last year, Johnson had his best performance in seven tries at Augusta, finishing tied for fourth. He is also coming off a win at the British Open in 2016.
