Insomniac Jason Day will ‘hit the gym’ during much-needed break from golf

The weekly grind of the golf season is taking a toll on the world’s No. 1 player, as Jason Day conceded after the Masters Tournament that he not only lacks in sleep but must “hit the gym” to gain back some of the weight he lost during a grueling several weeks on the PGA Tour.

“I was very tired Sunday night,” Day, who finished T10 at Augusta, said before last week’s RBC Heritage about how he felt following the final round of the Masters. “Usually, if I’m in contention at the tournament, I don’t sleep at all … I get about two hours of sleep because I’m so amped from what’s going on that day.”

So add insomnia to a growing list of ailments nagging at Day, who struggled with vertigo during last year’s U.S. Open and whose bad back almost forced him to withdraw from the opening round of the Match Play last month.

Small wonder Day — an early favorite to capture his first green jacket after winning the 2015 PGA Championship and reclaiming the top ranking from Jordan Spieth by prevailing in match play in March — shot three rounds in the 70s at Augusta, including a weary 73 in Sunday’s Masters finale.

Throw in a career-worst, third-round 8-over 79 at Harbour Town, and Day is a worn-out golfer who needs some sleep and a well-deserved break from the never-ending PGA Tour season.

“I have no idea,” he said Sunday, post-RBC, about whether he would compete in the Wells Fargo Championship at the beginning of next month.

“I’ve been on the road since December 28th, I’ve only had 10 days at home,” he said. “I’m not making any excuses for not being home. But I just need to get some time home and kind of recover and rest up.”

The week after Quail Hollow is The Players Championship, which could mark the next time Day hits a golf ball in competition. If he does return from a brief hiatus at TPC Sawgrass, he would have four more opportunities — including the AT&T Byron Nelson, the Memorial and the FedEx St. Jude Classic — to shake off any rust ahead of June’s U.S. Open.

In the meantime, though, Day planned to do what he could to live up to mentor Tiger Woods’ advice about playing consistently if he hoped to become a dominant competitor.

“I want to make sure I keep that level of play up. The only way to do that is make sure that I’m working hard off weeks when I’m not playing golf tournaments,” said Day, who acknowledged that this season’s calendar made it difficult to calibrate work and play.

“Scheduling is tough this year, the Olympics is throwing the tournaments around,” he said. “But I’ve got to be able to balance working in the off weeks but also recover and then be able to go out and try and win tournaments.”

To ensure his back does not kick up as it did during the WGC-Dell Match Play, Day’s routine now, in addition to his normal warmup, involves daily soft-tissue work with his physio. He has also changed his nutrition, how he trainsand general activities of daily living “just to extend the longevity of my career.”

Part of the new plan includes more time in the weight room to gain back the 11 pounds he lost during match play.

“I’m definitely going to hit the gym again,” Day said Sunday. “The way my body has been moving through my golf swing I’m not quite happy with. I’ve lost a lot of weight and I’ve lost a lot of muscle mass in my body. And it just feels a little too loose. So I’m going to get in the gym and try and tighten everything up there and try to add a little bit more weight next week.”

It’s a tricky balance for Day, who believes a break from the tour will help him recharge physically and mentally but fears falling behind in his training.

“The work that I’ve done to get to this point, I’ve been working very, very hard, so if I take time off then I’m behind schedule. I need to make sure that I keep that work ethic up,” he said.

Day worried that even a slight hitch in his prep work will slowly catch up to him.

“I can’t afford that,” he said, “especially being in the position that I’m at right now, especially with the upcoming majors that are coming in the mid-season and the Olympics and all that stuff.”

All that stuff makes for one tired world No. 1.

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