AUSTIN, Texas – Jason Day made his return to No. 1 in the world feel even sweeter Sunday by winning the Dell Match Play.

Day outlasted Rory McIlroy in an epic battle in the morning semifinals by making a 12-foot par putt on the 18th hole. The championship match against Louis Oosthuizen turned into a victory lap at Austin Country Club.

And to think Day thought about pulling out Thursday morning when his back seized up on him. Three days later, he looked better than ever.

“It’s been a memorable week, not only to win the Dell Match Play but to get back to No. 1 in the world,” Day said.

Day pulled ahead with a 10-foot birdie putt on the par-3 fourth hole, stretched his lead to 3 up at the turn and was relentless with his power and short game the rest of the way. He closed out Oosthuizen with a wedge to 3 feet for a conceded birdie on the 14th hole and a 5-and-4 victory.

It was the largest margin in the championship match since Tiger Woods beat Stewart Cink, 8 and 7, in 2008 at Dove Mountain in a 36-hole match.

Day was assured of the No. 1 ranking when Jordan Spieth lost Saturday morning in the fourth round and Day won his quarterfinal match that afternoon. But he said it would have felt hollow without leaving town with the trophy.

Oosthuizen, who knocked out Spieth, won the opening hole with a par and that was it. His only birdie was an 8-foot putt on No. 5 after Day had stuffed his wedge from the rough into 2 feet.

“I couldn’t buy a birdie,” Oosthuizen said. “I played OK, but nothing spectacular. Up against a guy like Jason, you need to play 3 or 4 under to have a chance.”

Day joined Woods and Geoff Ogilvy as the only multiple winners of the Match Play. Along with replacing Spieth at No. 1 in the world, the 28-year-old Australian figures to be the favorite when he goes to Augusta National next week to start preparing for the Masters on April 7-10.

Day, coming off a victory last week in the Arnold Palmer Invitational, has won six of his last 13 tournaments dating to the PGA Championship.

None of this looked possible when he winced and grabbed his back on the final hole he played in his 3-and-2 victory over Graeme McDowell on Wednesday. Day said he thought about going back to Ohio for tests, especially with the Masters around the corner. He went through therapy every day, and stuck it out. And while his back got progressively better, so did his game.

Day played only 101 holes over seven matches – one match was six holes when Paul Casey withdrew with a stomach ailment – and only had one match go the distance.

Rafa Cabrera Bello of Spain, who lost to Oosthuizen in the other semifinal, won the last three holes to beat McIlroy in the consolation match. The real consolation for the Spaniard was moving into the top 50 in the world ranking to earn a trip to the Masters for the first time.

Day might have won this tournament in the morning.

His semifinal match with McIlroy – only the second semifinal in the 18-year history of this event that the Nos. 2 and 3 seeds met – lived up to the expectation. The lead changed seven times. They combined for 11 birdies in chilly, blustery conditions.

The match turned on the 11th hole when Day got up-and-down for par with a 12-foot putt, while McIlroy missed a 6-foot birdie. Day got up-and-down eight times in his match against McIlroy. On the par-5 12th, McIlroy was first to hit and played well right of the green, away from the water. Day took on the hazard, and his shot cleared the water by about a foot to set up a two-putter birdie that gave him the lead for good.

Day had never seen the 18th hole in his life until he had to get up-and-down from a tough spot short and left of the pin. He played the slope too hard and the ball rolled 12 feet on the other side of the hole. McIlroy was 6 feet away for par when Day made the putt to win.

Oosthuizen was no match for him in the warmth of the afternoon. The South African hit out of a bunker into the hazard to lose the third hole, missed a 7-foot par putt on the seventh hole to fall 2 down, and Day took control with a 6-foot birdie on the ninth.

CARLSBAD, Calif. – Top-ranked Lydia Ko made three straight birdies early on the back nine Saturday in the Kia Classic and finished with a 5-under 67 to take a three-stroke lead.

Ko birdied Nos. 11-13 and closed with five straight pars to reach 14-under 202 at Aviara in the final event before the major ANA Inspiration next week in Rancho Mirage.

“I’d rather be a couple shots ahead than a couple shots behind,” Ko said. “But the girls are playing great golf. The course is tough, but still, the scores are out there. So I’ve just got to focus on my game. Anything can happen.”

The 18-year-old New Zealander saved par with a 10-foot putt on the par-4 18th, and has played bogey-free since her second hole in the first round. She won five times last season and is coming off second-place finish last week in Phoenix in the Founders Cup.

“I struck the ball really well,” Ko said. “I think almost the harder part was that because I was giving myself a lot of opportunities, it almost felt like I wasn’t putting good, but I was stroking good and holing a few putts here and there. I’m really proud with the way I played today. Obviously, I’ve got to take the positives and the confidence going into tomorrow.”

Sung Hyun Park, Brittany Lang and second-round leader Jenny Shin were tied for second.

Park had five straight birdies on Nos. 12-16, made a double bogey on par-5 17th, and closed with a birdie for a 68. Lang had a 70, making three birdies and four bogeys on the back nine. Shin shot 71.

“A lot of up-and-downs on the back nine, which I don’t like doing that,” Lang said. “I wasn’t quite as sharp on the back nine. I don’t know if I got a little tired or a little out of what I was doing. … But to come out with 2 under and still be right there, I’m very happy and excited for tomorrow.”

Second-ranked Inbee Park was 10-under after a 70.

Smiths Falls, Ont., native Brooke Henderson also carded a 70 and sits tied for 30th at 3-under.

RIO GRANDE, Puerto Rico – Ian Poulter shot a 4-under 68 on Saturday at windy Coco Beach to take the third-round lead in the PGA Tour’s Puerto Rico Open.

Playing the event for the first time after failing to get into the Match Play tournament in Texas as the first alternate, the Englishman got up-and-down for par from a greenside bunker on the par-5 18th, holing a 15-foot putt.

“It was a big save,” Poulter said. “Obviously it’s a par 5, it’s pretty much reachable in two off of a decent drive and I kind of left myself in an awkward spot. It wasn’t lying very well on the right-hand side just short of the green. I guess I got a little bit too cute, hit it in the front trap, splashed it out to 15 feet, but I rolled that par putt in the middle. Each putt like that obviously makes a difference at the end of the week.”

Poulter bogeyed the par-4 13th and rebounded with birdies on the par-5 15th and par-3 16th. He’s trying to win for the first time since the 2012 World Golf Championships-HSBC Champions in China.

“We got here very late, early hours of Wednesday morning, but I felt comfortable,” Poulter said. “I like the windy conditions. It kind of takes me back to hitting some old-school shots and I feel comfortable on the course. The ball was kind of boring through that strong wind, so you’re still able to get good distance out there. But I’m happy. I’m happy how I’ve hung in there nicely.”

He had an 11-under 205 total.

Tony Finau, Jonathan Byrd and Steve Marino were a stroke back. Finau shot 67, Byrd 68, and Marino 69.

“It’s windy out there,” Byrd said. “You had to be kind of real purposeful with your shots and I did that for the most part of the day and I made some nice putts and just played really solid. I’ve played the par 5s beautifully for the most part this week.”

Puerto Rico’s Rafael Campos, the leader after each of the first two rounds, had a 72 to drop into a tie for fifth at 9 under with Scott Brown (67) and Aaron Baddeley (69).

Campos didn’t make a par until the eighth hole, opening with three bogeys, a double bogey and three birdies. He played the final 11 holes in 2 under, birdieing Nos. 12 and 16.

“I came off to a really bad start,” Campos said. “I was having some difficulty kind of getting my tempo going and coming over the top on most of the shots at the beginning. But I was fortunate to kind of get a good rhythm afterward, a good tempo especially coming into the back nine. … I really didn’t strike the ball well, as good as I wanted, but was able to at least recover myself a little bit at the end.”

A 5-under 67 performance propelled Nick Taylor of Abbotsford, B.C., to T8 at 8-under – three-shots back of the leader. Weyburn, Sask., native Graham DeLaet carded a 70 to move to T12 at 7-under, while Adam Svensson, a product of Surrey, B.C., was 2-under on the day and sits T36.

AUSTIN, Texas – The Dell Match Play has produced a semifinal that is almost bigger than Texas.

Even without Jordan Spieth.

Jason Day powered his way to two victories Saturday to assure that he will return to No. 1 in the world.

But this is no time to celebrate. His reward is a semifinal showdown against defending champion Rory McIlroy, who ran his unbeaten streak to 12 matches and needs two more to join Tiger Woods as the only back-to-back winners. This is only the second time the No. 2 and No. 3 seeds have met in the semifinals since the Match Play began in 1999. They are the last two winners of this event.

Play away, please.

“I expect it to be very, very tough and very stressful out there,” Day said. “And that’s the stuff I enjoy.”

Day and McIlroy have never met in match play.

“I’ve love to play Jason,” McIlroy said. “I’d really relish it. He’s playing really well at the minute, coming off a win last week. I’d be really up for it. It’s a big match.”

Spieth, who led the Texas Longhorns to an NCAA title in 2012 and had the gallery on his side all week, won’t be around for all the excitement.

He lost his fourth-round match to Louis Oosthuizen, and then he lost the No. 1 ranking when Day advanced to the semifinal. Spieth was more concerned about how his swing got out of sorts than losing the No. 1 ranking.

“To be honest, it could be a good thing for me going into the Masters,” he said.

Day and McIlroy were all square going to the back in their matches. Day won two of the first three holes to pull away from Brooks Koepka, closing him out on the 16th hole. McIlroy ran off four birdies in six holes for a 4-and-3 victory over Chris Kirk.

“It’s been a bit of an up and down week, especially emotionally,” said Day, who considered withdrawing when his back seized up on him after his first match of the week. “It’s been quite amazing to be able to start the week, not really thinking I’m going to be able to play with what happened Wednesday, and then turn around and I’m No. 1 in the world. It’s a strange feeling. I’m glad I stuck it out.”

Oosthuizen, who eliminated Spieth with a 4-and-2 victory in the morning, took advantage of Dustin Johnson’s blunders in the quarterfinals to win, 2 and 1. Rafa Cabrera Bello of Spain also advanced to the semifinals by beating Ryan Moore, 2 and 1.

Oosthuizen and Day are the only semifinalists who have yet to play the 18th hole in competition at Austin Country Club.

“I didn’t make it very hard on Louis today, which is unfortunate,” said Spieth, who lost holes with three bogeys and a double bogey. “I was off from when I hit my first 10 shots on the range. I’ve had incredible control of the ball this week and of my wedges. I’m not exactly sure what happened.”

Spieth led a trail of Americans to the airport. There were 11 Americans in the round of 16 at the start of the day, none at the end of it. This is the first time since 2010 that no Americans advanced to the semifinals.

Day has played the fewest holes this week – 69 holes over five rounds – helped by an ill Paul Casey pulling out after six holes on Thursday.

Day squared the match against Koepka on the eighth hole, pulled ahead with a birdie on No. 10 and then hit out of the bunker to about 20 feet for an eagle that was conceded to go 2 up. Koepka never won another hole.

McIlroy’s toughest work came in the morning against Zach Johnson, who battled McIlroy to the very end. McIlroy was leading 1 up when he hit wedge to 3 feet on the 18th that seemingly wrapped up the match, except that Johnson made a 20-foot birdie putt and McIlroy had to roll in his birdie to win.

Oosthuizen reached the semifinals for the first time, and Johnson helped him get there.

Johnson three-putted for bogey on No. 11 to fall behind for the first time in the match. Oosthuizen went into the water on the par-5 12th, only for Johnson to follow with a shot into the water. Oosthuizen was 1 up playing the par-3 17th when he made a 20-foot birdie putt, and Johnson missed his birdie from 6 feet that would have extended the match.

“I just wanted to go through to tomorrow and see if I can get into this final,” Oosthuizen said.

That might be what it takes for anyone to pay attention to him or Cabrera Bello, who picked up one important victory this week. His victory Saturday morning assured him of moving into the top 50 at the end of the week and getting into the Masters for the first time.

Suwanee, Georgia’s Seth Reeves finished up a final round 5-under 67 on Saturday morning at Reunion Resort and Spa’s Jack Nicklaus Signature Course to take medalist honours at the first of four Qualifying Tournaments for the 2016 Mackenzie Tour season.

The 25-year old, a former NCAA All-American at Georgia Tech, won by three shots over Sam Love to earn fully exempt status for the upcoming year.

“It’s huge. Not having to worry about the re-shuffle or anything is pretty cool, but knowing what I’m going to do this summer is great. I haven’t been up in Canada very much, so I’m excited to join the tour and have some fun and have a good summer,” said Reeves.

New Hamburg, Ontario’s Cam Burke finished T7 and was the low Canadian thanks to closing rounds of 68-69 and will be exempt through the season’s first four events. A two-time Canadian Men’s Amateur Champion, Burke will have Mackenzie Tour status for the first time in his career.

“It’s really important to have that locked down and to know that I’m going to have a good summer ahead of me and a quality place to play; that’s the most important thing,” said Burke.

In total, 41 players finished T32 to earn Mackenzie Tour status for the upcoming year.

CONCORD, N.C. – Team Canada Young Pro Squad member Mackenzie Hughes carded a bogey-free final round 66 (-6) on Thursday to lock down the win at the GProTour event contested at the Rocky River Golf Club.

The 25-year-old Dundas, Ont., product finished the 36-hole tournament at 8-under par (70-66) to edge out co-runner-ups Kelvin Day of England and Chip Lynn of Sanford, Fla., by two strokes.

With the win, the Kent State graduate takes home $3,400 (USD). He will tee-it-up next at Web.com Tour’s Brasil Champions presented by Embrase from Mar. 31 – Apr. 3.

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Whether in a gym, a community centre or a park, Mobile Clinics presented by Acura is dedicated to making CN Future Links programming accessible any time, anywhere.

Equipped with the latest Acura MDX model, PGA of Canada teaching professionals conducted CN Future Links lessons to over 63,000 juniors in 2015. With a trunk full of golf equipment, teaching professionals travel all over Canada to deliver best-in-class programming, regardless of the setting.

For Golf Canada’s Chief Sport Officer, Jeff Thompson, mobile clinics are the bridge to reaching those who are limited in terms of access to a golf course.

“With mobile clinics, we are able to extend the outreach of CN Future Links and connect with Canadian youth where they are—schools, recreation centres, summer camps and more—all with the intent of igniting interest in the sport and letting them experience it,” he said. “We are thankful to both Acura and CN for their involvement in helping deliver lessons to those who may otherwise have limited access to a golf facility.”

The initiative is nation-wide, with all ten Provincial Associations leading the way with their own CN Future Links branded Acura MDX.

Since Acura jumped on board in 2014, over 120,000 juniors have received lessons through the program. The material taught through mobile clinics aligns with the latest Long-Term Player Development (LTPD) model, which provides research, statistic and insight into Canada’s player development pathway.

2016 Mobile Clinics will kick off when each province’s respective golf season gets underway.

To register a mobile clinic, parents, volunteers, teachers and community leaders are encouraged to contact their Provincial Association by clicking here.

ORLANDO, Fla. – Team Canada Young Pro Squad member Augusta James recorded a one-stroke victory on Wednesday at the National Women’s Golf Association (NWGA) event contested on the Dubsdread Golf Course.

James, a 22-year-old Bath, Ont., native, finished the tournament at 1-under (73-70-66) for the come-from-behind victory over Jenni Jenq of Saratoga, Calif. Her final round score of 66 (-4) was the tournament low, catapulting the N.C. State graduate into position to lock up the victory.

Richmond Hill, Ont., natives and Team Canada graduates Elizabeth Tong and Rebecca Lee-Bentham were also in action, finishing T8 and 17^th, respectively.

The win marks James’ second win on the NWGA Tour—she collected a win back in February at the Soboba Springs Golf Club in San Jacinto, Calif. In addition to her victories, James added a T2 finish two weeks back in Deltona, Fla.

The string of strong results on the NWGA Tour are a means to keep her game sharp during a break in the Symetra Tour schedule.

James will look to keep things rolling when the Symetra Tour kicks off again at Florida’s Natural Charity Classic from Apr. 8­–10. She will be joined by Young Pro Squad teammate and defending champion, Sue Kim of Langley, B.C.

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EATONTON, Ga. – Team Canada’s Amateur Squad member Hugo Bernard finished T4 on Tuesday at the Bobcat Invitational to record his third consecutive top-5 collegiate finish.

Bernard, a freshman with the Div II Saint Leo Lions, finished at 4-over par (71-69-74) to share a three-way tie of 4th place at the Cuscowilla on Lake Oconee course. The group was chasing Lynn University’s Jose Andres Miranda, who ran away with a three-stroke victory thanks to a tournament-low 66 in Sunday’s opening round.

Collectively, Bernard led the Lions to a 6th place finish overall, with Lynn University taking home the hardware.

Since joining the Lions in January, Bernard has made a significant impact. The 21 year-old Mont-St-Hilaire, Que., product notched a T20, 4^th, and two T4 finishes in his first four events.

Canadian standout and Team Canada graduate Adam Svensson of Surrey, B.C., won medalist honours for Barry University in 2014.

Bernard, last year’s Canadian Men’s Amateur runner-up, will look to keep up his hot play when the Lions hit the Argonaut Invivational from Apr. 4–5.

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SURREY, B.C. – Team Canada’s Development Squad wrapped up a two-tournament stint in B.C. on Saturday by collecting two additional wins at the CJGA Western Junior Championship presented by the Tour Performance LAB at the Northview Golf & Country Club.

In the Junior Girls (U19) Division, Development Squad member and Surrey, B.C., product Hannah Lee collected her second consecutive CJGA victory with a three-stroke victory over fellow Surrey native Susan Xiao. Lee, 16, captured the U19 Division despite being eligible for the U17 category. She proved to be up to the test, posting her second straight wire-to-wire victory with a 6-under (69-69-72) finish.

Team Canada’s Tiffany Kong of Vancouver came in at 2-under (76-68-70) to climb to a third place finish. Teammates and Richmond, B.C., natives Alisha Lau and Kathrine Chan finished 6^th and 9^th, respectively. All three Canucks also competed in the older U19 division despite being eligible for U17.

Vaughan, Ont., native and Development Squad member Tony Gil led the way for the Junior Boys (U19) Division, posting a 14-under (68-67-67) par score for the wire-to-wire victory. Fellow teammate A.J. Ewart of Coquitlam, B.C., trailed by three strokes to finish as runner-up at 11-under (70-71-64). Jae Wook Lee of Langley, B.C., rounded out the top-three by finishing at 9-under (74-69-64) to finish two back of Ewart.

Jack Simpson (Aurora, Ont.) and Charles-Éric Bélanger (Québec) were also in action for Team Canada, finishing T12 and 14^th, respectively. Bélanger struggled down the stretch after a come-from-behind victory at the CJGA Junior at Cordova Bay a week earlier.

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