John Daly has withdrawn from the British Open after booking in for surgery on his elbow.

The operation on his right elbow this week will end his PGA Tour season.

Daly first noticed something wrong with his right elbow at the Byron Nelson Championship in May, and tests revealed a torn tendon.

Doctors told him he could try to play as long as he didn’t hit a rock or a tree root.

“And that’s what happened on the 12th hole Friday at Greenbrier,” Daly said. “I was just trying to chip out and there was a root under the ball. It wasn’t more than 50-yard chip shot. But that’s the pain I’ve been dealing with.”

He was replaced in the British Open by Stephen Gallacher of Scotland. The Open is July 18-21 at Muirfield.

Daly is scheduled for surgery on Thursday morning. Doctors have told him he can start rehabilitation in early September, and if everything goes well, he could return to golf in the late autumn.

This will be the first time the 47-year-old has missed the British Open since 1999 at Carnoustie.

The surgery means he will not play in the only two majors for which Daly is eligible – the British Open and the PGA Championship as a past champion of both.

Daly won the 1991 PGA at Crooked Stick as the ninth alternate, and he won the Open in 1995 at St Andrews in a playoff over Costantino Rocca.

“I hate missing the British Open, especially at Muirfield. It’s one of the best on the planet,” Daly said.

Daly has not had a full PGA Tour card since 2006.