Day leaves Match Play to be with ailing mom
AUSTIN, TEXAS— Defending champion Jason Day tearfully withdrew from the Dell Technologies Match Play after six holes Wednesday so he could be with his mother when she has surgery for lung cancer.
Day said his mother, Dening, was diagnosed in Australia at the start of the year and told she had 12 months to live. He brought her to Ohio in the last month for more tests, hopeful that surgery would lead to a chance for a recovery.
“It’s really hard to even comprehend being on the golf course right now because of what she’s gone through,” Day said after taking a moment to clear his voice and wipe tears from his face. “I’m glad I brought her over here. And it’s been really hard to play golf lately this year. It’s been very, very emotional, as you can tell. I’ve already gone through it once with my dad, and I know how it feels. And it’s hard enough to see another one go through it.”
His father, Alvin, died of stomach cancer when Day was 12.
Day said he went through a wild streak after his father died until he was sent off to a golf academy, where under the teaching and mentoring of Colin Swatton, he rose to be a PGA champion and reach No. 1 in the world.
His mother took out a second mortgage on the house and borrowed money from relatives to pay for his schooling. After winning the PGA Championship in 2015, Day recalled watching her cut the lawn with a knife because they couldn’t afford a lawn mower and using a kettle for hot water to bathe. He once shopped for used clothes at a store where for $5 he could stuff as much as he could into a bag.
“I just need some time away with her to make sure that everything goes well,” Day said.
His agent, Bud Martin, said Day’s mother was at The James Cancer Hospital at Ohio State. He said the prognosis is better than what she had gotten in Australia, and doctors now hope that the cancer can be man- aged.
“I kidded his mother a few days ago on the phone,” Martin said. “I said, ‘The news seems to be getting better. I want to make certain you are there during his hall of fame speech.’ She loves it. It’s important to her to support him.”
Day spoke to the media before leaving to avoid any speculation about his own health. A year ago at the Match Play, he tweaked his back in the opening round and wasn’t sure he would be able to continue. Instead, he won his next six matches to capture this event for the second time.
He said the mass in her mother’s lung was three to four centimetres. The surgery is scheduled for Friday.
On a day of match play when other top seeds didn’t fare very well, Dus- tin Johnson made short work in his debut as the No. 1 seed. Johnson made five birdies in his opening eight holes and never gave Webb Simpson much of a chance in a 5-and-3 victory.
Of the top five seeds, Rory McIlroy (No. 2 seed) was beaten by four straight birdies from Soren Kjeldsen. Jason Day (No. 3) withdrew to be with his mother as she has surgery Friday for lung cancer. Jordan Spieth (No. 5) lost on the16th hole to Hideto Tanihara, who was making his Match Play debut. Hideki Matsuyama, the No. 4 seed, halved his match against Jim Furyk.
McIlroy and Spieth now need some help to advance out of their fourman group into the knockout stage on the weekend at Austin Country Club.