Jason Day battled vertigo in front of the golf world last June at the U.S. Open, and he put himself in position to pull off a win akin to what Ken Venturi accomplished in battling severe hydration to win the national championship in 1964.
Day first dealt with vertigo symptoms that week during the second round, falling to the ground as he approached the green at the par-3 ninth at host Chambers Bay. He managed the finish the round, then somehow managed to shoot 2-under 68 in Saturday’s third round, tying for the 54-hole lead. On Sunday, the Aussie shot 74 to finish tied for ninth.
The world No. 2 didn’t play again until the British Open at St. Andrews in July, where he came within a shot of getting into a playoff for the Claret Jug. However, before the feverish Monday finish, Day again battled vertigo.
Speaking Wednesday at the Hyundai Tournament of Champions, Day revealed he dealt with the symptoms during the seven holes he played in a weather-ruined Saturday at the Old Course.
“It came back, but I didn’t tell anyone about it because it would be a lot more questions that would happen, and it wasn’t as severe,” Day said. “I was a little dizzy that day, and it happened the Saturday of the Open Championship. I just kept my mouth shut about it because I knew that it would open another can of worms, and I didn’t want to talk about it.”
Day said the symptoms went away for the conclusion of the third round on Sunday and were not present in Monday’s final round.
After missing out in Scotland, Day went on a tear, winning his first major at the PGA Championship, as well the Canadian Open, The Barclays and BMW Championship. He’s been symptom-free since the Open, but, having dealt with these symptoms for over five years, knows that they could return at any time.
“I’ve been making sure that I’m staying on top of it and you can’t control it. It will come back whenever it wants to,” he said.
Day has been seeing a specialist at Ohio State University and will continue to take a cocktail of medications that aim to quell the vertigo from returning.
“Eye tests and vertigo tests and all that stuff,” he said. “That seemed to come back pretty good, so we’re on (medication) for another year and then we’re off.”
Ryan Ballengee is a Yahoo Sports contributor. Find him on Facebook and Twitter.
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