Rory Sabbatini said he didn't think he was doing anything wrong.

When he withdrew before the final round of the Target World Challenge in December, he did so because he was bothered by shin splints, an injury he said he didn't want to aggravate by continuing to play a hilly course several weeks before the start of the PGA Tour season in Hawaii.

Sabbatini also said there were other "personal issues" affecting his ability to concentrate on the golf course, specifically, the health of his wife, Amy, who had sought medical advice because of a rapid heartbeat; and the death of the father of his best friend and business associate.

"It was getting to the point where I didn't want to press it because I knew I was coming to Kapalua to start the season and I knew I had to give my body a rest," said Sabbatini, a four-time PGA Tour winner and the 10th-ranked player in the world. "My head wasn't on the golf course. So I thought the best place to be wasn't on the golf course."

Sabbatini said he probably wouldn't have withdrawn if the tournament was an official PGA Tour event. Because it was an unofficial event, he said he didn't think it was a big deal. He also didn't expect to receive money when he withdrew.

But it became a big deal because Tiger Woods is the host of the tournament, which benefits the Tiger Woods Foundation. And Sabbatini has been involved in a public spat with the world's No. 1 player that began when Sabbatini said Woods "looked as beatable as ever" at The Players Championship in May.

Several PGA Tour players criticized Sabbatini for withdrawing. But, in his first public comment since his withdrawal, he said he is surprised by the criticism he has received and the maelstrom his decision has created.

Sabbatini has been in Hawaii since he withdrew from the tournament. He finished 17th in the season-opening Mercedez-Benz Championship and second to K.J. Choi in the Sony Open. He will play in this week's Buick Invitational in San Diego.

"I never looked at it as being about the Tiger thing," Sabbatini said in an interview with the Post-Gazette. "I was hurt and not prepared to play. It happens every day on the PGA Tour. It had absolutely nothing to do with him whatsoever. That never entered my mind. Suddenly, the media starts making that seem likes it's part of some feud between Woods and I.

"I found it very interesting from certain PGA Tour members to comment on my withdrawal from the tournament when certain members have had a history of numerous withdrawals because of injuries and other situations."

Sabbatini was in last place, 28 shots from the lead, when he withdrew before the final round of the tournament. But Sabbatini still received a last-place check for $177,000.

He said he felt bad for Target, the title sponsor, so he has decided to donate the money to Target's United Through Reading program in which disconnected military families are reconnected through tapings of bedtime stories by parents serving in war-zone areas.

Such donations to support the military are nothing new for Sabbatini, a South African native who lives in Dallas. He has helped raised more than $750,000 for the Intrepid Fallen Heroes Fund -- a program that supports wounded U.S. soldiers. Last month, after finishing 10th in the Australian PGA championship, Sabbatini donated his earnings of $40,000 to Australia's Legacy Fund, which cares for spouses and children of deceased veterans in Australia, including families of U.S. soldiers.

Gavan White, a Legacy spokesman, said it was one of the largest individual donations made in the 80-year history of the fund.

"I felt bad for Target because I thought I wasn't getting paid and they paid me anyway," Sabbatini said. "I wasn't expecting it, so we're going to put it to a good cause and use it to support their reading program."