Jason Day on CJ Cup Byron Nelson course - "We're still getting some mud balls out there now"
Jason Day is at the TPC Craig Ranch to defend his title at The CJ Cup Byron Nelson. The Australian arrives as one of the best-ranked players in the field and most experts consider him among the top favorites to win the event.
On Wednesday, May 1, Day attended a press conference at the event's venue. Among the topics he talked about was the current condition of the course, anticipating the possibility that the 'preferred lies' rule would be enforced.
This was part of what Jason Day said:
"Course is soft just because we've had some rain. I would think that we're going to play probably ball in hand the whole week... we're still getting some mud balls out there now."
According to Accuweather, heavy rain is expected throughout the weekend in McKinney, Texas, where TPC Craig Ranch is located. The forecast also indicates that the weather is expected to worsen approaching Sunday, so a finish can also be expected on Monday.
Jason Day won the Byron Nelson in 2023 after five years without a win on the PGA Tour. It was his second title at the event, having won it in 2010.
What else did Jason Day talk about?
Jason Day also answered questions about Scottie Scheffler and his current hot streak. He said:
"Scottie Sheffler right now is playing some of the best golf that we've seen in a very long time. Probably, since the Tiger days. He seems like a very well balanced person and that's like very difficult to do."
Reporters asked Jason Day to offer some advice to Scheffler and his wife Meredith Scudder, as they are close to becoming parents for the first time. This is what Day had to say:
"The pure enjoyment that you get from having kids there's nothing like it. The stress that you get from having kids is nothing like it. So it's going to be a lot of fun for him. He's going to have to adjust a little bit. It took me a year to really adjust to being a father. I couldn't find my identity in and being a father, because of how selfish this game can be."
"Once I found that out and I could understand it a little bit more, that's when I started becoming like a better father, and all I'm trying to do is just like really shape my kids to people that I think that would be good citizens and good people, that would somehow help, you know, the future."
Jason Day has been married to his wife, Ellie Harvey, since 2009. They have four children together, Dash James (born in 2012), Lucy Adenil (born in 2015), Arrow Joseph (born in 2018), and Oz Nile (born in 2023).