Haven (Wisconsin), Aug 17 (IANS): Australian golfer Jason Day hit an emotional note after winning the $10 million 97th Professional Golfers Association (PGA) Championship here, crediting his mother for playing a crucial role in his career.
Day, who climbed a couple of spots to third on the world rankings, recorded a final round score of 67 at the Whistling Straits course. His total of 20-under 268 is a record at the Majors.
After his round, the 27-year-old turned emotional as he recalled his days a troubled child in the town of Beaudesert in Queensland.
Day's father Alvin died of cancer when he was 12. Soon after Day became and alcoholic and started getting into regular fist-fights.
His mother Dening, who was worried that her son would be lost to the streets, sold the family's home and borrowed money from relatives to send the troubled teenager to boarding school.
There, Day received a a book about Tiger Woods from his roommate. The feats of the American legend inspired the young boy who began practising 30 hours a week to become what he is today.
"I’ve changed so much from where I was and what I saw as a kid to where I am now. I mean, it’s just an amazing feeling, an amazing story to really be able to tell people, to give them insight on what I felt and the emotions that I’ve gone through growing up as a kid in Australia and losing my dad very young," Day was quoted as saying by the Guardian.
"I have no idea where I would be, what I would be doing, probably wouldn’t be doing much of anything. And I wouldn’t be challenging myself and trying to better myself if I didn’t have the people that I have in my life today."
The Australian - who lost eight members of his family during the devastation wreaked by Typhoon Haiyan in the Philippines in November 2013 - stated that memories of the struggle with poverty during his childhood prompted him to break into tears at the 18th hole.
"I remember growing up, we were poor. I remember watching her cut the lawn with a knife because we couldn't afford to fix the lawn mower. I remember not having a hot water tank, so we had to use a kettle for hot showers," he reminisced.
“That’s why a lot of emotion came out on 18. That’s why a lot of emotion came out for me. Just knowing that my mum took a second mortgage out on the house, borrowed money from my aunt and uncle, just to get me away from where I was to go to school, seven hours drive," Day added.
Day now wants to upstage Jason Speith at the top of the world rankings.
“As long as I am healthy, I feel like I’m going to be there a long time. I still want to accomplish that No1 goal of mine, which is to be the best player in the world. I’m still motivated and still very hungry for that, even after this win,” Day insisted.
“It would have been very tough for me to come back from a major championship such as this if I didn’t finish it off,” he added.
“Knowing that I had the 54-hole led or tied for the 54-hole lead for the last three majors and not being able to finish, it would have been tough for me mentally, to really kind of come back from that."
“Even though I feel like I’m a positive person I think that, in the back of my mind, something would have triggered and I would have gone, 'maybe I can’t really finish it off'."