Jason Day's rough run of bad luck at major PGA tournaments is finally over.
The 27-year-old Australian outlasted a diverse leaderboard of players from around the world at Whistling Straits, including 2015 breakout star Jordan Spieth, to win the 2015 PGA Championship at 20-under-par (5-under 67 on Sunday) -- the first major title of his already impressive decade-long PGA Tour career.
In doing so, Day becomes the only player in Tour history to finish a major at 20-under-par, eclipsing Tiger Woods' -19 performance at the 2000 British Open.
Players from the U.S., South Africa, Germany, England and India joined Day on the leaderboard heading into Sunday's play, including Tony Finau -- a Utah native who is currently the only player on the PGA Tour of Tongan and American Samoan descent.
However, it was 22-year-old Texas native Jordan Spieth who presented Day's biggest challenge on Sunday's back nine, continuously pulling tricks out of his golf bag to stay withing striking range for most of the afternoon. Spieth came up short by three strokes at 17-under-par, but he did pick up a consolation prize by virtue of his 2nd place finish, overtaking Rory McIlroy as the #1-ranked golfer in the world.
In addition, Spieth finishes the 2015 PGA season at 54-under-par combined over the span of four majors -- the best combined score in PGA history. South Africa's Brenden Grace (-15) and England's Justin Rose (-14) round out the top four.
In the end, Sunday and the entire tournament belongs to Jason Day. Prior to Sunday's final round triumph, Day had notched nine top-ten finishes in 20 major tournaments played, including finishing as the runner-up at the 2011 Masters and the 2011 & 2013 US Opens.
Always a bridesmaid and never a bride while suffering through a litany of injuries and illnesses over his career, Day finally turned the tide with a solid final round coupled by some shakiness in the clutch by the golfers behind him on the leaderboard. He came into the day with a two-stroke lead, increasing it to four over the field at the back-nine turn before cruising to a three-shot win down the stretch.
Day is the fifth Australian to win the PGA Championship, joining fellow countrymen Jim Ferrier, David Graham, Wayne Grady and Steve Elkington. He's the first to do so in 20 years, etching his name on the Wanamaker Trophy and securing a place in PGA lore and Australian golfing history forever.
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