Jason Day found major momentum in Open woe

A year ago, Jason Day stood on the brink of glory at St Andrews and failed to take that most important of steps.

The chastening experience of missing an Open Championship play-off with Zach Johnson, Marc Leishman and Louis Oosthuizen did drive the Australian to greater things. Yet while Day arrives at Royal Troon this week as world number one and reigning PGA Champion, his long-awaited maiden major title claimed a month after his Open near-miss, the 28-year-old still seeks to close some unfinished business.

Day had been knocking on the door at the majors since his breakout year on tour in 2011 when he finished runner-up at both the Masters and US Open. Five more major top-10s followed but it was not until 2015 at St Andrews that form and promise was replicated at The Open. After 54 holes around the Old Course, the Queenslander led the tournament with Oosthuizen and Ireland’s amateur hero of the hour Paul Dunne, only to shoot a final-round 70 to miss out by a stroke on the play-off, which would be won by Johnson.