PONTE VEDRA BEACH, Fla. — Three-time major champion Vijay Singh had surgery on his right knee and is expected to miss the next three weeks on the PGA Tour.

Singh, the defending FedEx Cup champion and a former champion of the Sony Open that is underway this week, had athroscopic surgery Wednesday in Jacksonville to repair torn cartilage. He hope to return in time for the AT&T Pebble Beach National Pro-Am.

"The doctor says I'll be on crutches for a few days, and then I'll be OK," Singh said. "I don't consider this a big setback or anything. I think the knee will be much stronger in the long run, and it is certainly better that it happened now compared to the middle of the season."

Singh played last week at the Mercedes-Benz Championship and tied for 27th in the 33-man field.