Jason Day said he was playing better. He finally had a score to show for it on Thursday at Bay Hill.
Day one-putted his final seven holes, including a 10-foot eagle putt on the par-five 16th to take the lead and two tough par saves at the end for a six-under 66 and a one-shot lead in the Arnold Palmer Invitational.
Among those one shot behind was Adam Scott, which was no surprise. Scott is the hottest player in golf, coming off two straight victories at the Honda Classic and the Cadillac Championship at Doral. He played bogey-free in benign weather on Thursday on a course where no blade of grass seemed to be out of place.
Photo: Reinhold Matay-USA TODAY
Day has not played enough to have serious problems with his game, though he missed the cut at Torrey Pines and finished a combined 35 shots off the lead in the other three tournaments he entered this year. In the five tournaments since his previous victory in September last year, he has not finished within seven shots of the lead.
“There was no sense of urgency at all for me, really,” Day said. “I just kept on saying: ‘Just make sure you stay patient and things will happen, it will happen.’ I just got to make sure I get the reps under my belt and hope it will work. This is one good round, one good round in the right direction... So that helps.”
Rory McIlroy made a pair of double-bogeys and opened with a 75, leaving him in danger of missing his second straight cut against a full field.
He hit his opening tee shot out-of-bounds and made his other double-bogey with a shot into the water on No. 8. McIlroy hit two other shots into the water and escaped with par, while he made par putts of 10 feet, 15 feet and 25 feet.
“It probably could have been a few worse,” McIlroy said. “I end up shooting this. I’ll get some good work done on the range tonight and come out tomorrow and play a good round of golf to get myself into the red numbers, at least be here for the weekend [and] I can make a charge.”
Henrik Stenson, Marc Leishman, Brendan Steele and Troy Merritt were also on 67. The group on 68 included the resurgent K.J. Choi and Justin Rose, who made two eagles.
Day does not have a great history in his limited time at Bay Hill. Going into Thursday, he had broken 70 only three times in 14 rounds, with nothing lower than 68. He only had one bad swing, a tee shot that soared right and out of bounds on the ninth hole for a double-bogey. He played the last seven holes in five-under, including the six-iron he hit to within 10 feet on 16.
HERO INDIAN OPEN
Staff reporter
Terry Pilkadaris of Australia had a three-shot lead at the Hero Indian Open in New Delhi after yesterday’s second round. Pilkadaris added a 64 to his first-round 67 to lead Spain’s Nacho Elvira (68) and India’s S.S.P. Chawrasia (67).
Taiwan’s Lee Chieh-po was in a share of 104th, adding a 73 to his first-round 75. Compatriot Lin Wen-tang withdrew from the tournament after a first-round 75.
Manchester United on Tuesday confirmed Michael Carrick as interim manager until the end of the season, tasking him with leading the Red Devils back into the UEFA Champions League. “Having the responsibility to lead Manchester United is an honor,” said Carrick, 44, who won 12 major trophies in his 12-year playing career at United. The former midfielder previously had an unbeaten three-game stint as caretaker boss at Old Trafford in 2021. Carrick then took on his first permanent managerial role at second-tier Middlesbrough in October 2022 and was sacked in June last year after the club finished 10th in the
Dallas Mavericks rookie Cooper Flagg on Wednesday was ruled out for the second half of their 118-109 loss to the Denver Nuggets after the No. 1 pick sprained his left ankle in the first half. Flagg was called for a foul while defending against Peyton Watson and turned the ankle as he fell to the floor with 6 minutes, 1 second left in the second quarter. Flagg limped to the bench and continued to the locker room, but returned for the final 2 minutes, 35 seconds before the break. The 19-year-old did not come out for the second half before the announcement that
Yassine Bounou on Wednesday saved two penalties, while Youssef en-Nesyri netted the decisive spot-kick as hosts Morocco secured a 4-2 shoot-out victory over Nigeria following a 0-0 draw in a tense Africa Cup of Nations semi-final in Rabat. Morocco, seeking their first continental title in 50 years, are to face 2021 winners Senegal in Sunday’s decider in Rabat, while Nigeria take on Egypt in the third-place playoff tomorrow. The 120 minutes before the shoot-out had few clear-cut chances for either side, but it was Morocco who created more opportunities, although they were denied by some fine saves from Nigeria goalkeeper Stanley Nwabali. Nigeria
Reigning NBA Most Valuable Player Shai Gilgeous-Alexander on Sunday sparked defending champions Oklahoma City to victory, while Anthony Edwards led Minnesota’s last-minute fightback to beat San Antonio. Gilgeous-Alexander scored 29 points while adding eight assists and five rebounds in the Thunder’s 124-112 home victory over Miami, improving the NBA’s best record to 33-7 after outscoring the Heat 70-53 in the second half. “We locked in defensively. We were finally able to get some stops,” Thunder guard Aaron Wiggins said. “We were able to get out in transition a little bit, get going offensively and find the flow.” Jalen Williams scored 18 points, while
RSS