THE 153RD OPEN

July 17, 2025

Jason Day

Mixed Zone

JASON DAY: Got lucky with the weather obviously. Got off to a really poor start on the front side. I didn't hit a fairway. When you're not hitting a fairway, it makes it really difficult to get yourself back in play. I didn't have too many good lies. I was out of position where I had to lay up a couple times, especially on 1, 8, you know what I mean? Missed a poor up-and-down on 9 after hitting a really good second shot there.

I don't know how long -- the weather here is the craziest weather pattern I've ever experienced in my life. There's no consistency to it whatsoever. You look at the weather -- I mean, I'd love to be a weatherman here. You just get it wrong all the time.

Other than that, I really enjoyed playing golf. It was frustrating for me to be out there playing golf today, but I'm glad I played better on the back side.

Q. Is it hard in these conditions early and you end up not hitting fairways?

JASON DAY: Yeah, when you're not hitting fairways, it just makes it hard. Hard to control the golf ball coming into it because the greens are so firm. Obviously when it starts raining now and there is going to be some wind out there. So that's obviously going to make it harder to hit fairways because there's going to be a lot of moisture get between the ball and the club face, it's going to spin it off, and we get a lot of cross-winds out there too. So the ball's going to go a lot shorter.

Guys are going to probably struggle to control some of the bounce and rolls coming in. Now they're going to start to most likely have that first like skid on the ground, whereas we obviously had some nice bounce and roll -- especially on the chipping is going to be difficult. It's starting to come down now, so I'm happy I'm in.

Q. Are you saying the weatherman never gets it right here?

JASON DAY: Definitely not. I can say that with true honesty because watching the weather pattern over the last two weeks, and even like -- because I got here last Friday. Other than last weekend, he got it right, but this whole week has been awful trying to get it right with the weather.

Q. For them it's no big deal to be wrong?

JASON DAY: It's not good to be wrong in golf. It might be good to be wrong as a weatherman.

Q. What makes that 1st tee shot so difficult and tricky for guys?

JASON DAY: Out of bounds on both sides.

Q. In terms of what are you thinking when you step up?

JASON DAY: It's 270 to the first part on the right and then 290-ish to the second part on the left. You've got to thread it. Wind was in out of the right pretty steady today, out of bounds, and long rough to an elevated green.

Once you're in the rough, very difficult to control the ball coming into it. The greens are so firm, so it's hard to get the correct distance landing it. And you've got to hit the fairway there to get yourself in good position to be able to like get yourself on the green to at least give yourself a chance to birdie.

Q. Obviously after a tough start, are you happy with how you kept grinding through the back nine?

JASON DAY: That's all you can do. My process out there was actually quite horrific. Usually I have a landing -- like a finish spot, and just the communication wasn't good on my half. Brucey was trying his hardest to get me kind of to steady the ship a little bit. Unfortunately, I just felt a little rattled out there, just because I wasn't hitting a lot of fairways and just trying to get in play. We all put on the clock. So we're trying to race a little bit.

After I got onto the back side, I started kind of focusing a little bit better, get the process right. Unfortunately, I three-putted the bloody par-5 at 12. I played the par-5s terrible today, just not in position.

Q. Is that the other benefit of you're missing this rain, but you've got a big break too, you play tomorrow, and you can go and think about that process.

JASON DAY: Yeah, and that's probably what I'll end up doing. I've obviously got my performance coach. You can't -- I've been professional too long to get this wrong. To work hard coming into this week and then to go out there and have poor process is not acceptable, especially in my eyes.

It's not any -- like no one else other than myself that I have to blame because I put in the hard work and I go out there and have a poor process. Don't get the correct numbers, start making bogeys, that's all on me unfortunately.

I've got to do a better job of it and hopefully come back tomorrow and do it again, play better.