Marc Leishman WD with back injury at AT&T Byron Nelson

Four-time PGA TOUR winner Marc Leishman has been forced to withdraw from the AT&T Byron Nelson with a lower back injury.

Leishman has seven top-13 finishes in the tournament over the years including last season’s runner up effort at Trinity Forest where he opened with a 10-under 61 and held a share of the 54-hole lead only to fall behind Aaron Wise.

The 35-year-old Australian first felt the discomfort in his back after his Begin Again Foundation charity golf day on Monday and hoped it would settle down in time for Thursday’s opening round in Dallas.

“My lower back just flared up a bit on Monday night and Tuesday,” Leishman said.

“I think I slept on it a bit funny.

“I was hoping it’d be good by today because I really love the tournament but it wasn’t feeling to flash this morning so I decided to withdraw and seek some more treatment.”

Leishman, who sits 13th in the FedExCup this season after his win at the CIMB Classic, is hopeful the injury won’t be long term.

He remains cautiously optimistic about next week’s PGA Championship at Bethpage Black in New York.

“I’ll get it more thoroughly checked out and worked on but I hope it just needs some rest and I’ll be okay for next week,” he said.

Leishman’s place in the field at Trinity Forest was taken by Daniel Chopra.