Day: Now it's his turn in the spotlight

IRVING, Texas -- Jason Day can thank 16-year-old Jordan Spieth for allowing him to fly under the radar this week. While Spieth was basking in the glow of making the cut and moving into contention on Saturday with a 3-under 67, Day was playing in relative anonymity - in the second-to-last group, no less.

It's not exactly how things are supposed to go when you're in contention for your first tour win. But then again, nothing has been conventional for Day this week.

After nearly withdrawing prior to Thursday's first round with sinus problems, Day has found himself at the top of the leader board for three straight days, firing a 3-under 67 on Saturday to move two shots clear of the field going into Sunday's final round.

"I felt like I've kind of flown under the radar this week a little bit, and I think that's helped me a little bit, too," Day said. "But tomorrow I'm going to be in the spotlight and hopefully I can play my game and just be in control of my emotions and in control of where my ball goes."

Day certainly wasn't in control of his golf ball on Saturday. He only managed to hit five of 14 fairways and eight of 18 greens in regulation. The saving grace came in the form of 22 putts, including 12 one-putts.

While Day's putting will be critical during tomorrow's final round, the Aussie know there's something else that could be far more important: his mental game.

Like most players in contention for their first tour win, Day said he doesn't want to get ahead of himself and the possibility of getting the proverbial monkey off his back.

"I'll go out there and I'll think 'Yeah, I've got two par 5s, I can birdie those, that's two-under. If I can birdie a couple others, and if I can par the rest, I'll be good.' What I'll do tomorrow is do exactly what I'm doing today and the previous days, go out there [and] play my game."

-- Jonathan Wall