Newsmaker of the month: Jason Day
Publicly, as his world ranking fell beyond 150, Jason Day said repeatedly that his body and game were in good enough shape to once again reach for the pinnacle of world golf. Privately, the 35-year-old considered the possibility that his storyline would be confined to that of a one-major wonder whose body failed him when he should have been at the peak of his powers.
Yet a week after missing the cut at the site of his last PGA Tour win exactly five years prior, Day shot a nine-under 62 in the final round to win the AT&T Byron Nelson by a stroke.
A year since his mother’s passing, Day’s caddie, Luke Reardon, carried Dening’s name on his caddie bib as the Queenslander won his 13th PGA Tour title at the same tournament where he won his first, 13 years earlier. On Mother’s Day, no less, with wife Ellie and their four children all in attendance, Ellie pregnant with their fifth child.
After a wait of 1,835 days, it was the perfect way for Day to confirm his career resurgence.
“It’s that much more special to be able to have the family with me,” said Day, who rose to 20th in the Official World Golf Ranking after his win. “For Ellie to see me win on Mother’s Day, to have my mum’s name on my caddie bib, it’s a very, very special win that I will remember for a very long time.”
Getty images
Headliners
Cam Davis: Earned a second invitation to Augusta National with a tie for fourth at the PGA Championship at Oak Hill Country Club, his best result in a major. Davis and countryman Cameron Smith both shot five-under 65 in the final round to tie the low final round in a
PGA Championship at Oak Hill.
The Australian Golf Club: Confirmed as the host venue for the 2023 Australian Open for a record 22nd time. Nearby The Lakes Golf Club will serve as co-host for the first two days in the format that brings men’s, women’s and All Abilities fields together. Lucas Herbert and Stephanie Kyriacou were the first two players confirmed to play.
Margie Masters: Australia’s first winner on the LPGA Tour, Masters had her ashes spread at the bend in the first hole of Woodlands Golf Club in Melbourne, an exhibition of memorabilia unveiled after a memorial service held at the club.
Maddison Hinson-Tolchard: The West Australian continues to assert herself as one of the best players in college golf in the US, finishing tied for fourth at the NCAA Division 1 Women’s Championship in Arizona.
Gabi Ruffels: A two-time winner on the Epson Tour this season, Ruffels was medallist at 36-hole qualifying at Vancouver Golf Club to play her way into the field for this month’s US Women’s Open at Pebble Beach.
Rosebud Country Club: The club on Victoria’s Mornington Peninsula will host a First Stage of DP World Tour Qualifying School from August 29-September 1. Rosebud made history in 2022 as the first Q-school site located outside continental Europe.
Jeffrey Guan and Joseph Buttress: Hailing from New South Wales and Western Australia, respectively, Guan and Buttress were announced as the 2023 recipients of the Cameron Smith Scholarship, the first time the scholarship has gone national.
NSW Team: The team of Harrison Crowe, Belinda Ji, Declan O’Donovan, Rachel Lee, Annika Rathbone, Jeffrey Guan, Jye Pickin and June Song defeated South Australia twice on the final day to claim the Interstate Teams Matches at St Michael’s Golf Club in Sydney.
Royal Queensland Golf Club: The Brisbane club will host the Australian PGA Championship for the third straight time from November 23-26.
She Did What?
Chloe Veeran will be the envy of all L-platers when she is old enough to drive the $60,000 Isuzu she won for her hole-in-one at the South West Open at Bunbury Golf Club, south of Perth. The 16-year-old from Busselton is part of Golf WA’s Talent Development Program and was in the first group to play the par-3 17th hole during the two-day adidas PGA Pro-Am Series event won by Jose De Sousa. Veeran is able to claim her prize without sacrificing her amateur status due to changes made to the Rules of Golf in 2022.
