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Woods pulls out of the Open

Tiger Woods had hoped to tee it up in Kent © Getty Images

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• Profile: Tiger Woods

Tiger Woods has finally confirmed he will not play at this year's Open Championship at Royal St George's, as he continues his recovery from injury.

Woods revealed last week that his return to full fitness is taking longer than expected, after aggravating a sprained knee and strained Achilles tendon in his left leg during his last competitive round, at the Players Championship in May.

And that rehabilitation process has now forced him to miss the third major championship of the year, as he looks to ensure he does not return before he is completely healed.

"Unfortunately, I've been advised that I should not play in the British Open," Woods said in a statement. "As I stated at the AT&T National, I am only going to come back when I'm 100 per cent ready. I do not want to risk further injury.

"That's different for me, but I'm being smarter this time. I'm very disappointed and want to express my regrets to the British Open fans."

Woods initially caused the injury after playing a shot from an awkward stance underneath the Eisenhower Tree at Augusta National's 17th hole, during the third round of this year's Masters.

According to his official website, he rang R&A chief executive Peter Dawson personally to inform him he would be unable to play this year.

Nevertheless, the 35-year-old is confident he will eventually be back better than ever.

"In hindsight, I probably shouldn't have competed at the Players, but it's a big event, and I wanted to be there to support the tour," he said. "I've got to learn from what I did there and do it right this time and not come back until I'm ready.

"I think my best years are still ahead of me, and I'm very confident and optimistic about the future."

With the three-time tournament winner out, his place in the 156-strong field in Sandwich would be taken by Brendan Jones - but the Australian is also unavailable as his wife is expecting a baby.

The 14-time major champion remains a doubt for the final major of the year, the USPGA, which starts at Atlanta Country Club on August 11.

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