Tiger Woods removed himself from consideration for the Ryder Cup team Wednesday evening with a clear message that he is not healthy enough to play.

One day after U.S. captain Tom Watson said he trusted Woods to give him the “straight skinny” on the condition of his back injury and his game, Woods said he called the 64-year-old captain to say he would not be available.

The decision spares Watson from having to leave Woods off the team, and it eliminates a distraction over the next three weeks before Watson announces his three captain’s picks for the Sept. 26-28 matches against Europe at Gleneagles.

“I have already spoken to Tom about the Ryder Cup, and while I greatly appreciate his thinking about me for a possible captain’s pick, I took myself out of consideration,” Woods said in a statement on his website. “The U.S. team and the Ryder Cup mean too much to me not to be able to give it my best.”

Woods’ best finish this year was a tie for 25th because of nagging back issues at the start of the year that led him to have surgery on March 31. (AP)