“He’s been knocking on the door for quite a while now. And I think that he was close at The Masters that year as well”. With his victory, Day rose two spots to third. “The way Jordan has been playing and the way I haven’t played much this year… if he goes to No. 1 today, it’s very deservedly so”, said McIlroy, who shot a final-round 69 and finished some 90 minutes before the final group.
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On a leaderboard dotted with national flags – Grace and George Coetzee from South Africa, Rose from England, Lahiri from India – it was the Aussie flag that flew over the closing ceremony, where Day was presented with the Wanamaker Trophy, the first from his nation to win it since Steve Elkington in 1995. He finished 17 under to go 54 under this year in the majors, breaking the record Woods set in 2000 when he won the U.S. Open, British Open and PGA. Starting with the Memorial Tournament in June, Spieth has not been out of the top four. “To hold him off knowing he’s going to be the best player in the world now, it felt great”.
“What I imagine all our dreams were as kids was to win majors”.
Indeed, Day was the last man standing on the 18th green, locked in a long and emotional hug with caddie and coach Collin Swatton.
What it means: One of the most talented players in the game, Day had experienced nothing but frustration in seeking his first major. For the final round that year, he was paired with an impressionable 22-year-old: Day, who ended up tied for 10th.
The close calls were wearing on Day, who had six top-five finishes in majors since 2011 and had at least a share of the 54-hole lead in three of the majors, including this one, this year. He also led the birdie count for the 2015 majors with 91 and best of all he replaces McIlroy as world number one.
“I could tell that (Spieth) was the favourite, which makes this all the more special, ” the Queenslander said.
Spieth may not have gotten his coveted third major, but he did still have a wonderful tournament.
Day began the final round with a two-shot lead over playing partner Spieth, although the strongest initial challenge came from Grace, who picked up a shot on the third and then rolled in a hat-trick of birdies from the fifth. “He proved me wrong”. Day, who has endured a string of near-misses on golf’s biggest stages, was never going to let this one slip away. And each time, when the ball rocketed off the face of the club, he said, “that hope was lost”.
At No. 16, Day blasted a driver 313 yards down the left fairway, hit a 4-iron some 226 yards to onto the green and two-putted for birdie. That was when Spieth knew neither he nor anyone else was going to catch Day.
“It’s been a long journey, I didn’t expect to ever grow up and be on the PGA Tour”, Day said. “It just, it baffles me the stuff he can (do) out there”.
More days like this, and Day might be challenging Spieth for that title, as well. Day shot 20 under – the best in major history. “I said to him, after the last Shark Shootout, ‘Was there anything that you saw in my game that you could possibly improve?’ So we talked about it. And to be able to have a golfer that was No1 in the world for 331 weeks, is pretty wonderful to have that advice”.
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Grace overcooked his second shot on the par-4 10th hole and overshot the green. “I learned a lot about myself, again, being able to finish the way I did”. It also was a sign of how hard it is to win majors, even if you’re the No. 1 player in the world.
