Jason Day Suffers Horror Finish as Australians Wilt at Masters

On a terrible Masters final day for Australia’s golf stars, Jason Day broke down. Day surrendered with four double bogeys in his final 10 holes to fall to a tie for 39th after being in a strong position to secure a top-12 finish and, with it, a guaranteed ticket back to Augusta National the following year.

And what magnificent doubles they were. The first occurred on the par-4 ninth hole when the former world No. 1 four-putted after he had been in the top 10 and holding steady at three under par for the tournament.

Day’s first putt for a birdie from 44 feet to three feet was a brilliant curl, but he missed his second attempt for a par and his third putt for a bogey after pushing his first attempt for par past the hole. He then hooked his drive into the trees on the 10th hole, appearing rattled, forcing him to reload with a penalty shot and incurring a second double bogey.

When Day putted his second shot through and into the water for another double while awkwardly positioned inside the bunker behind the renowned par-3 12th green, the collision continued. After hooking his drive deep into the Georgian pine trees on the par-5 thirteenth hole, he was forced to start over.

He briefly found his footing with pars on holes 14 and 15, but lost another shot on 16, and he finished with a elusive birdie at the last. Day signed for an 80 after finally totaling the damage.

Another promising tournament for the resurgent star came to a depressing end. The former major champion entered Augusta as one of the outside contenders after posting top-20 finishes at all seven of his PGA Tour events in 2023 and reaching the quarterfinals of the WGC-Dell Technologies Match Play last time out.

He lived up to that expectation, finishing Friday’s second round in solo second place at nine under par, before a bogey-double on the 15th caused him to lose ground.

Cameron Smith, the current Open champion, once again finished as the top Australian thanks to Day’s meltdown. Smith finished third in 2018 and third at the 2020 Masters, but he could only manage a tie for 34th this season at four over after finishing with consecutive rounds of 75.

“I’ve been on the back foot all week with the weather and wasn’t particularly striking it all that well,” Smith said after playing on the incorrect side of the draw. “There were numerous momentum par-saves, but the longer stuff made it a difficult week.”

After the third round of the weather-affected tournament resumed on Sunday, Adam Scott also fell in the standings. The 2013 winner and Day were tied at five over after rounds of 77 and 74 over the weekend. Scott’s hopes of a comeback on the final day were dashed on the 15th hole of round three when he hit two balls into the water en route to a triple-bogey eight. The draw, however, was not Scott’s fault for his underwhelming performance.

Reference: www.theguardian.com