GWD_MAY_16

WHO’S THE BEST OF THE BIG THREE?
We rank them head-to-head to see who’s most likely to win at Augusta.
Jordan Spieth Rory McIlroy Jason Day
$12.5m. But he won only once –
at the 2014 WGC Accenture
Matchplay Championship played at
Dove mountain, outside of Tucson,
AZ where he beat Victor Dubuisson
in the final on the 23rd hole.
Just as Jordan Spieth had excelled
in 2015 with two victories in the
majors, so too Day rose to a whole
new level, claiming five titles
including his first major win.
At the PGA Championship at
Whistling Straits in August, Day shot
an incredible 20-under 268 – the
lowest score against par ever in a
major. With his mentor and stand-in
father Colin Swatton on the bag, Day
broke into tears realising how far he
had come since his troubled youth in
southeastern Queensland. He finished
the year 3rd in the FedEx Cup
standings, and second in the world.
Day will obviously start among the
favourites at Augusta. He, like Rory
McIlroy, Bubba Watson and a few
others, appears capable of hitting
every shot the course demands. Harig
though reminds those putting money
on Day that there are no guarantees
at Augusta, or anywhere else in golf.
“Just look at his countryman Greg
Norman,” says Harig. “He came
close so often but never did win.
He is the perfect cautionary tale.
That said, it wouldn’t surprise me
in the least to see Jason Day win
the Masters.”
DRIVING
IRONS
SHORT GAME
PUTTING
MENTAL
STRENGTH
Not the best part of his
game - 78th in distance,
80th in accuracy on the
PGA Tour in 2015. 52nd
in Total Driving.
7/10
49th on last year’s PGA
Tour with 67.9% of GIR.
But ranked 1st for
proximity to hole from
rough and 50-125 yards.
8/10
Got up and down an
impressive 65% of the
time on the PGA Tour
last year (4th) – 331
times out of 509.
8/10
One-putted 44%
of greens last
year; 1.699 putts
per green. Both
stats rank No.1.
9/10
Golf Channel’s Brandel
Chamblee puts Spieth in
same class as Nicklaus
and Woods for mental
strength.
9/10
24th for accuracy
and 14th for
distance on
PGA Tour in
2015.
9/10
Had he played enough
rounds, his 71.03% GIR
would have been 7th on
PGA Tour. Led stat in
Europe at just over 80%.
10/10
Up and down
58.45% of the time
in the US –
competent certainly,
but not outstanding.
7/10
Hit 1.749 putts
per hole in US
(89th) and 1.743
putts per GIR
Europe (18th).
7/10
Let him down
at times but his
achievements
prove his selfconfidence.
8/10
Long, but can be
crooked. Third
longest on PGA
Tour last year, but
162nd for accuracy.
8/10
Found 70.83% of greens
in 2015 – 7th best on
PGA Tour. But 103rd on
Tour from between 100
and 125 yards.
8/10
Second on PGA Tour in
scrambling last year
with 65.34%. His
chipping and pitching
often get overlooked.
9/10
Never a bad putter, but
a big improvement last
year saw him rise to No.6
on the PGA Tour with
+.585 strokes gained.
9/10
How tenacious do you
need to be to go from
poverty in rural
Queensland to major
champ and world No.1?
9/10
MASTERS RECORD
Day hasn’t quite matched his two
near misses the last couple of years.
28 20 10 02
T2
WD
3
T20
T28
2011 2012 2013 2014 2015
COURSE
MANAGEMENT
For a player with only
middling driver and iron
stats to lead the tour in
scoring average with
68.9 (2015) is amazing.
9/10
GW SAYS… It’s Jason Day
For the most
part he doesn’t
need to manage a golf
course because he hits
it so far and high.
8/10
With the help of
caddie and mentor
Colin Swatton, Day very
rarely makes mental
and strategic errors.
9/10
TOTAL 50/60 49/60 52/60
It was tight, but the Aussie just edges it. While Spieth
doesn’t have the raw power and McIlroy can be a streaky
putter, Day’s distance, shot shape, high ball flight and
razor-sharp short game are perfect for Augusta.
May 2016 Golf World 37