Tiger Woods: Paul Azinger 'would not pick Woods' for Ryder Cup

Woods hit a double bogey on the sixth as he struggled with his back and his swing

Tiger Woods' hopes of appearing at next month's Ryder Cup look bleak after he missed the halfway cut at the US PGA.

Woods, 38, was a doubt for the final major of the year because of a bad back and he looked far from fit at Valhalla.

The 14-time major winner shot a second-round 74 - the same score he carded in the first round - and finished on six over par.

"He has gone from the artist to the engineer," said ex-Ryder Cup captain Paul Azinger.

"It is difficult to watch a Vincent Van Gogh paint by numbers. We want to see Tiger come back and get all of this stuff out of his head."

Azinger said he wouldn't take Woods to Gleneagles.

"I don't see how you can take an injured player who's not playing well."

Azinger, who led the USA to their last victory - at Valhalla in 2008 - added that he expected Woods to rule himself out of contention.

"I am guessing he will call [American Ryder Cup captain] Tom Watson and beg out of this and say 'I am not ready', make Tom's decision easier," he said.

Woods admitted that his back injury affected his performance at the US PGA, saying it was "probably not a good idea" to continue, but that he was "stubborn".

"It was sore," he said. "It went out on me on the range.

"When I was warming up I hit a four iron and felt the same thing I had last week. It's a matter of getting through it."

The four-time US PGA champion, who has played in seven Ryder Cups, cannot qualify automatically for the United States Ryder Cup team and is relying on a captain's pick.

Eight-time major winner Watson just missed the cut in what is probably his final US PGA appearance

But having missed a large chunk of the season because of a previous back injury and struggled for form since his return last month, it seems unlikely Watson will make Woods one of his three wildcards.

The automatic qualification period for the biennial contest between Europe and the United States at Gleneagles ends after the current tournament.

Woods, who made his Ryder Cup debut in 1997, was 69th in the American standings before the US PGA, with only the top nine players qualifying automatically for Watson's team.

Woods will now miss the FedExCup Playoffs, meaning he is unlikely to play any competitive golf before Watson announces his wildcards on 2 September.

Watson has endured a bad couple of weeks, with Dustin Johnson announcing he was taking a break from golf, Matt Kuchar pulling out of the US PGA with a bad back and defending champion Jason Dufner withdrawing during his first round at Valhalla with a bad neck.