The 40-year-old is still recuperating from back surgery but Day admits his golfing dreams, as an up-and-coming young golfer, was to perform like Woods.
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“Why was it so hard?” Las Vegas native Scott Piercy was in contention at the Masters after two rounds, but a third round 79 saw him drop down to a top 30 finish.
“This year I just had to try and weigh a risk that doesn’t present itself every year”, he said. “Maybe it’s where I grew up, in the sense that the weather’s not always terrific in Iowa”. Not everybody’s going to understand. “Mine came down to just a very personal decision that, again, I don’t expect anybody to understand, but trust that I believe I’m making the right decision for myself, for my future and for those around me”.
“If Rory played like he did two years ago I’d say he might be disappointed if he only won 19”.
“The Olympics is the premier event when it comes down to a lot of different sports”.
That didn’t stop him from following his instincts.
Marc Leishman – who, like Scott, defied horror luck with their first and second-round tee times past year to both lead on the back nine on Sunday at St Andrews – said Australia’s challengers could do with some good fortune this time around.
The tough nature of the course might suggest that a previous victor, used to the travails of a links, has the best chance of launching an assault of the Claret Jug trophy. They don’t know what I know about myself and my future and my goals. “I would have gone”.
Jason Day, Dustin Johnson, Rory McIlroy and Jordan Spieth have all chose to sit out golf’s return to the Olympics for the first time since 1904.
Matthew Southgate of England, right, plays his shot on the 12th tee, watched by Rory McIlroy of Northern Ireland, during a practice round for the British Open Golf Championships at the Royal Troon Golf Club in Troon, Scotland, Tuesday, July 12, 2016.
Day, Johnson and McIlroy previously withdrew, all citing the Zika virus. Links golf can reward players who can be creative around the course, and who drive accurately. “And, although I’ve no real positive momentum to build off, that being said, I’m playing quite nicely”.
“He said, ‘No worries”. “That’s what he said”.
IGF President Peter Dawson said Spieth cited his concern over “health issues” for withdrawing.
He is the defending champion at the John Deere Classic, which was moved to the week of the Olympics when the PGA Tour adjusted its schedule for the Rio Games.
“If you make four threes there this week, you’re probably going to gain a bit of ground on the field”.
“I don’t really have any experience here at Troon, so it was good to get a couple of good looks at it last week, and then I just played another 18 holes this morning. I think I’m the only guy that ever won The Open with a Surlyn cover”. “I guess a portion of that sweetness is you still have an opportunity to get it back yourself”. This is only his second appearance at The Open, finishing 30th in his debut a year ago. And when it was over, as he pushed back from the table, he said quietly with a smile, “Do we have a tournament this week?”
And since becoming Open champion the Claret Jug has not been far from Johnson’s company.
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So just how does a young athlete follow up a year that even Spieth admitted he never dreamed would happen so quickly in his career? If he can stay straight off the tee and hit greens in regulation, then his phenomenal putting could carry him to victory on Sunday.
