Page 21 - Aruba Today
P. 21
SPORTS A21
Thursday 24 March 2016
Jason Day tweaks back in victory at Match Play
DOUG FERGUSON Jason Day of Australia watches his tee shot on the first hole during round-robin play against hole. Matt Kuchar had the
AP Golf Writer Graeme McDowell at the Dell Match Play Championship golf tournament at Austin County Club, shortest match, a 6-and-5
AUSTIN, Texas (AP) — Jason Wednesday, March 23, 2016, in Austin, Texas. victory over Anirban Lahiri,
Day overcame an early who flew to Texas from a
deficit to win his opening Associated Press runner-up finish in India.
match Wednesday in the Most of the drama on a
Dell Match Play. to get inside right away for aldson, 3 and 2. a halve with Thomas Piet- windy day involved Day,
Now he has to overcome a treatment and see what’s “I felt like everybody was ers of Belgium. Players and who was coming off a vic-
bad back. wrong.” on our side today,” Spieth caddies wore black ribbons tory Sunday in the Arnold
In the latest in a series of in- Top-seeded Jordan Spi- said. “I almost felt like a in their caps to honor the Palmer Invitational.
juries for Day, he was reach- eth, the crowd favorite at home Ryder Cup match. victim of Tuesday’s bomb- Day’s career has been
ing for his back on the 15th Austin Country Club who And Jamie, I’m not sure ings in Brussels. filled with injuries. He with-
hole and then winced and helped Texas to a national what he would say about In the round-robin format, drew after one round in the
grabbed it after a tee shot title in 2012, had the largest it. ... Everyone was very re- all of the players still have 2012 Masters with an ankle
on the 16th hole. He took a crowd and delivered a sol- spectful, but every single a chance to advance from injury. A wrist and thumb in-
knee on the green, where id performance. Spieth was step I took, somebody was their groups and reach the jury kept him out for much
he closed out Graeme Mc- 4 up through seven holes, yelling at you, ‘Hook ‘Em knockout stage. A year of the spring in 2014 after
Dowell, 3 and 2. and outlasted Jamie Don- Horns’ or ‘Go Jordan, we’re ago, only three players who he won the Match Play. He
Day headed straight for the rooting for you.’ Which is re- lost in the first round man- suffered vertigo symptoms
fitness trailer for treatment. ally, really cool.” aged to reach the round at the U.S. Open last year.
The severity of the injury Rickie Fowler, the No. 5 of 16. It might be easier this He took three months off at
was unclear. Day left with- seed, rallied from 3 down year because there are the end of last year to be
out speaking to reporters, on the back nine to square halves during group play. with his wife when she gave
and his agent later sent a his match on the 15th hole, Bubba Watson (No. 4) birth to their second child
statement that he tweaked only for Jason Dufner to halved his match with PGA and to concentrate on
his back, had some work win the next two holes with Tour rookie Patton Kizzire. his health. The back pain
done on it, was pleased birdies to beat him on the Phil Mickelson, playing this grabbed when the match
with winning and is getting 17th hole. World Golf Champion- was in hand.
prepared to play Thurs- Dustin Johnson (No. 8) lost ship for the first time in five Day lost two straight holes
day.” to Robert Streb, and Hideki years, ran off three birdies early in the match, includ-
Day told the Australian As- Matsuyama (No. 12) lost to in a four-hole stretch on ing the par-3 third when he
sociated Press before get- Rafa Cabrera-Bello. Adam the front nine to build a big came up well short of the
ting treatment, “It’s really Scott (No. 6), who has lost lead and Matthew Fitzpat- green and into a hazard.
hard to play with searing seven straight matches in rick couldn’t catch up. The But he kept smashing tee
pain in both sides of your this event, had to settle for match ended on the 14th shots and converting them
lower back. Just my back into birdies, ending the
has seized up and I need back nine with two birdies
for a 1-up lead. McDow-
ell found the water on the
11th, and Day went 3 up
through 13.
Lacking on a warm, blus-
tery day were the number
of great shots typically seen
in match play. Part of that
was Austin Country Club,
unknown to just about ev-
eryone except for Spieth
and Dufner, whose coach
lives in Austin.
“I think everybody is kind
of feeling out how it’s go-
ing to be this week,” Dufner
said.q
