Seve Ballesteros, whose last golf tournament was 16 months ago, has pulled out of the Masters at Augusta in four weeks' time.
But the 47-year-old still holds hope that he might be able to make a comeback at the following week's Spanish Open at San Roque.
Last year Ballesteros missed his first Masters since his debut in 1977 because of an arthritic back condition. However, this time it is a right knee problem which has forced him to pull out.
"After a long and difficult training process and having reached the point where I felt satisfied with my progress, I noticed an unexpected and preposterous injury to my right knee cartilage," he said in a statement today.
"To my regret this ailment has made me give up participating in the forthcoming Masters.
"I shall continue trying and putting my best efforts in recovering as soon as possible to play the Spanish Open."
Ballesteros voiced fears last May that he may never play competitively again. But two months later he was speaking more optimistically, with his main target being the Open at St Andrews in July.
