David Duval has withdrawn from the NEC World Championship in Akron with thesame back problem which forced him out of last week's US PGA Championship.
Duval quit the final Major of the year after four holes of his second round.He was already 16 over par as his slump from world number one to world number137th continued.
The 2001 Open champion has not won since his triumph at Royal Lytham and hasfailed to make the cut in 14 of his 18 starts this year and has also sufferedvertigo problems.
His withdrawal from the field at Firestone leaves 86 players competing for themillion US dollars first prize. They include 23 Europeans, headed-up by world number nine Padraig Harrington, providing his wife Caroline doesn't go into labour.