Major Champion Abruptly Withdraws During First Round of U.S. Open
The U.S. Open officially teed off on Thursday morning as the year's third major tournament took center stage.
Just 10 holes into his tournament, though, former major champion Jason Day found himself riding in a cart back to the clubhouse. The United States Golf Association announced Day withdrew from the tournament with a back injury.
Video showed the 2015 PGA Champion riding in a cart with his caddie.
Jason Day Struggled Before Withdrawing
Day got off to a miserable start to the tournament, bogeying his first hole before settling down over the next two holes where he managed to find pars at both.
The round completely unraveled after that, though, as Day rattled off six straight bogeys to sit at seven-over after just nine holes. After starting on the back nine, he recorded a par at No. 1 and then decided his tournament was done after 10 holes.
It's a tough blow for Day, who's had an up and down 2026 season.
Jason Day Got Honest About Tough 2026 Season
The one-time perennial contender at majors got honest about his tough season in which he's recorded just two top-10's. Day did finish T-12 at the Masters, where he was in contention before a final round three-over, 75 cost him a chance at a green jacket.
"To be honest, I would say that a lot of the stress and pressure that I'm feeling is because I can't get the ball on the green," Day told reporters after missing the cut at the Memorial Tournament earlier this month.
"I'm playing to miss a shot instead of playing to a target, just because I don't know what the ball's going to really do once it comes off the club face."
Day thought he'd eventually break out of the doldrums.
"So I think at some point I'll get beyond it. It's really hard to be patient right now because every tournament I typically have three decent rounds and one bad round that just puts me out of the tournament. I'm in the 30 to 60 finish position-wise. It's been a tough year," he said.
That break won't come at the U.S. Open, though.
This story was originally published by Men's Journal on Jun 19, 2026, where it first appeared in the News section. Add Men's Journal as a Preferred Source by clicking here.
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This story was originally published June 18, 2026 at 5:05 PM.