Lee Westwood has followed Rory McIlroy and Luke Donald in deciding not to play next month's Volvo World Matchplay Championship in Spain from May 17-20.
The world's top three all competed at Finca Cortesin near Marbella last May but, with the Masters champion Bubba Watson and his fellow American Hunter Mahan likely absentees as well, the highest-ranked player in the 24-man field probably will be Germany's Martin Kaymer.
Like McIlroy, Westwood has taken up his membership of the PGA Tour again this season, which has led to a number of changes in his schedule. He is not defending the Ballantine's Championship in South Korea this week, preferring to take a week off before returning to the United States for the Wells Fargo Championship and Players Championship. The world No.3 won the World Matchplay at Wentworth in 2000, but went out at the last-16 stage to the eventual winner Ian Poulter a year ago.
McIlroy was beaten at the same stage by his fellow Northern Irishman Graeme McDowell, while Donald reached the final, but the trio have all dropped the event so that they are fresher for the following week's BMW PGA Championship at Wentworth and for the build-up to the US Open which will take place in San Francisco in June.
McIlroy has also decided not to play the Nordea Masters in Sweden the week before he defends his major title.
Sergio Garcia, winner of his last two events in Spain, will try to make it three in a row at the world matchplay. The 31-year-old, on course for a return to the Ryder Cup side in September, won the Castello Masters by 11 shots on his home course last October and followed it with a one-stroke victory over Miguel Angel Jimenez in the Andalucia Masters at Valderrama a week later.
"It is tough to qualify for such an elite field, so I am delighted to have won my place," said Garcia. "I am hitting the ball really well and the confidence is coming, so I am very much looking forward to playing. I love matchplay and even more I love playing in Spain, so I think this will be a great week for me."
Finca Cortesin near Marbella is again the venue for the matchplay and other confirmed participants in the 24-man field are McDowell, 2010 US Open champion, the South Africans Branden Grace and Charl Schwartzel, the American Brandt Snedeker, Australia's John Senden and the Colombian Camilo Villegas.
Previously confirmed were Poulter, the Open champion Darren Clarke, Scotland's Paul Lawrie, England's Justin Rose, the Swede Peter Hanson, Kaymer, another South African, Retief Goosen, and Spaniard's Alvaro Quiros and Rafael Cabrera-Bello.
First prize at the world matchplay is more than £700,000 and those who exit at the group stage still walk away with more than £60,000. The players are divided into eight groups of three for round-robin games on the Thursday and Friday. The top two in each group progress to the last-16 knock-out stage.
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