DAY ON PROWL
JASON TWO back Of STREB, WALKER
HERE comes that man again. If there’s any name on the leaderboard that can cause the other contenders to gulp, it might be Jason Day. Don’t look now, but the defending champion looks ready to make a strong push to retain the Wanamaker Trophy he won last year at Whistling Straits. Day’s performance late Friday afternoon atsogg yB alt usrol Golf Club has to make everyone else in contention nervous. If they aren’ t, they should be. Day has found his form in the second round of the 98th PGA Championship, posting a 5- under 65 that was highlighted by an incredible run of seven birdies over an eight-hole stretch. It vaulted him up the leaderboard, putting him at 7-under for the tournament, two shots behind leaders Jimmy Walker and Robert Streb at 9-under. “Getting myself in contention is where we want to be by Sunday,” Day said, “and obviously playing and shooting 65 today is one step closer. It’s always exciting to be in content i on. I’m super stoked about what happened today.” It’s not quite the way it was when Tiger Woods was dominating the sport, but Day might be the only player these days who can rattle the field when he starts to make a move because it normally ends with him winning. He set a record last year by capturing his first major at Whistling Straits with a score of 20-under. He already has won three times this year, though he hasn’t been a real factor in any of the majors until now. “I’ve just got to focus on getting through [Saturday] and getting myself in contention on Sunday,” Day said. “You can’t think too far ahead. But I feel pretty good about my game.”
He should. His impressive run Friday came after he played the first seven holes in 2-over, including a doublebogey at the difficult par-4 7th. He was even par for the tournament at the time and it looked like the world No. 1 wasn’t going to take advantage of the soft conditions caused by an overnight rain.
“There were a few swear words going on inside my head,” he admitted.
But then the Australian found his game, starting with three consecutive birdies at the eighth, ninth and 10th. After a par at the 11th, Day went on another tear, posting four consecutive birdies that looked almost too easy. The foursome started with birdies at the par-3 12th and the par-4 13th with virtually no trouble from tee to green.
At the par-4 14th, Day sent roars through Baltusrol when he buried a 30-footer for his sixth birdie in seven holes. When his approach at the par4 15th landed 3-feet from the pin, the fourth straight birdie was inevitable. That put him at 7-under.
“Once I birdied eighth the momentum started picking up and it picked up pretty quick,” Day said. “I had a great back side.”
It has already been an interesting PGA Championship for Day. As the defending champion, he opted not to practice on Tuesday, electing to avoid the heat and focus solely on hosting the Champions Dinner that night. He didn’t get much sleep that evening because his wife Ellie had an allergic reaction and had to be treated at a local hospital. That left Wednesday as his only day to practice when everyone else was fine tuning their skills.
Maybe practice is overrated as Day managed to shoot an opening-round 2-under 68 and heads into the weekend with plenty of momentum. “It’s always good to be in contention at a major championship,” Day said. “Being that I won it last year it would be nice to get No. 2, my second major and get that under my belt. Right now I’ ve got to focus on resting up and be as patient as possible over the weekend.”
With Day on the leaderboard, not everyone will be resting easy.