Jason Day says he is remaining cautious about his recent back injury as he prepares for The Players Championship on Thursday.
Former world number one Day, who currently sits 12th in the rankings, only managed six holes of his opening round at the Arnold Palmer Invitational last week before he was forced to withdraw due to back issues.
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The 31-year-old Australian said an MRI scan revealed he had a tear in a disc in his lower back but he is still aiming to tee it up at TPC Sawgrass on Thursday as he aims to lift the trophy for the second time, having triumphed back in 2016.
Speaking ahead of the opening round, the 2015 PGA champion says he is optimistic the injury will not affect his performance this week.
“My long term confidence in terms of my back, I am not even thinking about it right now,” he told reporters on Tuesday.
“I feel really cautiously optimistic about how things are progressing and the way that I feel.” Day, who had appeared more positive about his back injury earlier in the week, will be playing alongside American duo Jason Kokrak and Scott Langley over the first two days.
