Turns out the biggest fight was to hold back the tears. Not only did they show the Australian’s realization of what he’d accomplished, but they washed away all of his past major championship disappointments.
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There were times over the last few holes when Day was tempted to roll the tape in his mind of previous experiences.
Despite the ominous presence of Spieth alongside him in the final group, Day recovered from a desperate mishit on the ninth to pick up further birdies on the 11th and 14th.
Dening may not be on the 18th hole of Whistling Straits on Sunday to witness her son’s day of glory, but one thing is certain: The long-hitting Aussie will not be where he is now if not for his mom’s love (See related story on A1). “I didn’t expect I was going to cry”, he told CBS Television.
“Honestly the way Jordan has been playing and the way I haven’t played much this year – I think that was only my 12th or 13th event – it’s very deservedly so”, said McIlroy, w ho had not played since the US Open in June after rupturing an ankle ligament playing football with friends on July 4. He bit his lower lip, swatted his caddie on the arm, knowing his work was nearly done.
Spieth, the Masters and US Open victor, was touted as the player headed for history at the 97th PGA Championship, where he had a chance to join legendary Ben Hogan and superstar Tiger Woods as the only men to win three majors in a year.
To add to his early trials, Day lost eight family members in the Philippines to the devastation wreaked by Typhoon Haiyan in 2013, then collapsed on the course during the U.S. Open because of an ongoing illness.
He finished second at the 2011 Masters and was runner-up at the U.S Open in the same year and also 2013.
“Not being able to finish, it would have been tough for me mentally to really kind of come back from that”, Day said. “There have been such fantastic golfers … and to have that record just goes to show the work I’ve put in is paying off”. “He was still making birdie on the holes that I didn’t birdie so I wasn’t going to gain that much momentum”.
Each week, GolfChannel.com takes a look back at the week in golf.
Spieth has the greatest consolation possible.
“I wasn’t going to stop fighting until it was over”, said the 27-year-old, who takes home a $1.8 million prize nearly as hefty as the Wanamaker Trophy itself.
Swatton was the golf coach at Kooralbyn and their relationship got off on the wrong foot.
“I remember not having a hot water tank, so we had to use a kettle for hot showers”, Day said. He moved to No. 3 in the world, meaning the top three in the world are all under 27 and have combined to win five of the last six majors. It also convinced Spieth his struggle to get clear of Day was done. McIlroy motivated to get it back will make it even better. He was hoping for a miss, a double bogey, anything to rattle him.
He finished with seven birdies on the day and two bogeys, twice reaching 20-under as his pursuers scrambled in his wake.
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We all knew it was only a matter of time before Jason Day won his first major golf championship, and on Sunday at Whistling Straits in Wisconsin, Day’s time finally came when the Aussie won the 2015 PGA Championship. The media knew all about the Queenslander’s wretched childhood, from losing a father to stomach cancer to then descending into addiction and aggression before he was a teenager.
