Scottish Daily Mail

QUOTE OF THE WEEK

- derek.lawrenson@dailymail.co.uk

‘THIS is the start of the road to get back to No 1. Last year was not good with a lot of stuff happening off the course but I have a goal.’

Jason Day, after defeating Alex Noren at the sixth hole of a play-off for the Farmers Insurance Open yesterday. It follows a difficult year, when wife Ellie suffered a miscarriag­e and his mother was diagnosed with cancer. This was his first win since the 2016 Players Championsh­ip.

Fair play to the European Tour — at least they’re trying to do something about how long rounds take, and with some success. Not so the PGa Tour, leading to the ludicrous situation in California on Sunday where former ryder Cup player JB Holmes took four minutes to play a crucial shot on the 18th, without any official sanction. Think about that for a moment. in athletics, people run a mile in less time than it took the selfish american to make his mind up — and golfers wonder why so many people find their sport boring. The suspicion was that Holmes was using his dawdling as a tactic to increase the

pressure on alex Noren, playing in the same group. in Dubai, one former player who was out watching the final group was upset because he considered another slow player, Haotong Li, was doing the same thing to rory Mcilroy. Officials are wary of stepping in over the closing holes of tournament­s and err on the side of leniency because they know what is at stake. Hence nothing was done about Li and Mcilroy falling a hole behind the group in front — and it wasn’t because of rory. But what Holmes got away with was simply outrageous and shame on both him and the PGa Tour for allowing it.

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