Double delight for Day as win takes him top of rankings

Jason Day secured a double delight on Sunday as he won the WGC-Dell Match Play and returned to the top of the world rankings.

It is the second time that the Australian has won the event following his success in 2014, as he first finished one up against Rory McIlroy in the morning’s semi-finals before dispatching of Louis Oosthuizen 5&4 in the final.

The 28-year-old has now won back-to-back tournaments following his success at last week’s Arnold Palmer Invitational, with his latest triumph seeing him move back to the top of the world rankings.

The reigning PGA Championship winner admitted that it has been a memorable week at Austin Country Club and he was pleased to return to the top of the rankings for the first time since September.

He said: “I’m very, very thrilled. It’s been a memorable week this week, not only winning the Dell Match Play championship but also to get back to No 1 in the world.”

Day’s success was made even more remarkable after a back strain threatened to end his tournament after his very first match against Graeme McDowell.

The Australian conceded that it was touch and go whether he would pull out of the tournament, but he was delighted by how quickly he recovered from the injury.

He added: “It was 50/50 when I woke up on Thursday and was hitting balls on the range. My team wanted me to get an MRI on my back but I thought if I have to pull out I can get an MRI back home. I’m very pleased with how it recovered so quickly.”

Tagged Jason Day, WGC Match Play