Max Homa advances at WGC-Dell Match Play after Hideki Matsuyama withdraws

Hideki Matsuyama has withdrawn from the World Golf Championships-Dell Technologies Match Play because of a neck injury.

Matsuyama was slated to play Max Homa at 10:06 a.m. ET in a match that would have had implications for the Round of 16. Matsuyama’s withdrawal means that Homa will advance to the final 16 for the first time in three appearances at this event.

“Yeah, I feel bad Hideki is hurt, obviously,” Homa said. “That stinks. It's nice for me, bogey-free round, but yeah, it's honestly pretty nice to get some rest and get ready for the weekend because it's obviously quite a bit of golf. Would have rather played, but I'll take it as a quasi-win.”

Homa beat both Justin Suh and Kevin Kisner by 3-and-2 margins on the tournament’s first two days. Matsuyama beat Kisner, 1-up, on Wednesday but lost to Suh on Thursday. Matsuyama could have forced a playoff with Homa by defeating him in Friday’s match.

Matsuyama’s WD left Homa with an entire day to fill.

“I think I'm just going to go through like a light practice today and I might actually take my wife on a date,” Homa said. “We haven't gotten to hang out much because of having a kid and all the golf, so maybe I'll go get us some lunch and watch a little bit of golf, but probably go through like a light practice day and be as fresh as I can for tomorrow.”

Matsuyama wasn't the only high-profile player to withdraw Friday. Will Zalatoris conceded his match to Ryan Fox because of illness. Zalatoris ended the week 0-3, while Fox's record improved to 2-1. Fox will need to await the result of the Andrew Putnam (2-0-0) and Harris English match (1-1-0) to find out his fate. Putnam and English tee off at 1:57 p.m. ET.

Putnam will advance to the Round of 16 with a win or tie, but there will be a three-way playoff between Fox, Putnam and English if English wins.

Homa entered the week with a 3-3-0 record in this event. He went 2-1-0 in his debut in 2021 but lost a playoff to Billy Horschel for a spot in the Round of 16. Homa went 1-2-0 last year. Homa now has an opportunity to add another high finish to a season that already includes two wins (Fortinet Championship, Farmers Insurance Open) and the No. 2 ranking in the FedExCup. Homa entered the week 294 points behind FedExCup leader Jon Rahm. The winner this week will earn 550 points, while second place gets 315 points.

Homa also has reached a career-high sixth in the world ranking this season. By making the Round of 16, Homa is guaranteed to add his sixth top-10 in 10 starts this season (players who lose in the Round of 16 finish T9 in the tournament). He has finished outside the top-25 just once this season.

This is Matsuyama’s second withdrawal of the season because of a neck injury. He also withdrew from the third round of the Cadence Bank Houston Open in the fall. Matsuyama, the 2021 Masters champion, was coming off a fifth-place finish at THE PLAYERS.

"I experienced some stiffness in my neck this morning while warming up on the range, preventing me from making a full swing," Matsuyama said. "As a precautionary measure, I decided to concede my match to Max and rest before moving on to the Valero Texas Open next week. I want to express my sincere appreciation to Dell Technologies and the Austin Country Club for their kind hospitality and supporting the WGC Match Play through the years."