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By Dave Lagarde
PGATOUR.com Correspondent

It wasn't very long ago that a teenager from Australia was walking through the clubhouse of the Glen Club in the Chicago suburb of Glenview following the first round of the 2007 Nationwide Tour's LaSalle Bank Open.

Jason Day's win in Cleveland moved him all the way to eighth on the money list. (WireImage)

He halted in his tracks after spying the tournament hardware sitting on a pedestal in the rear of the dining room. Drawn like a moth to a flame, he walked toward the gleaming sterling silver trophy until he was close enough to reach out and touch it. Drawn like a moth to a flame, he simply could not resist giving the prize a lift. He smiled once the trophy was back in its proper place.

Jason Day, at once as mature and as precocious as any 19-year-old might ever be, had a surprising first impression.

"It's heavy,'' the young Aussie said before pausing.

"Sure would be nice to get one of these,'' he said, measuring his words as carefully he might an important approach shot into a green.

Although in contention, Day faltered with an impatient final-round 73 at the LaSalle on June 3. Afterward, he jetted off to Japan for an extended holiday. Refreshed and refueled, he returned to the Nationwide Tour a week ago, grabbing a tie for 15th in the Peek'n Peak Classic before the inevitable happened Sunday.

Day, arguably the next shooting star from Down Under, won the Legend Financial Group Classic presented by Cynergies Solutions to become the youngest champion in Nationwide Tour history by a wide margin. Day, at 19 years, 7 months and 26 days old is almost two years younger than James Oh, who was 21 years, 5 months and 27 days old when he won in 2003.

And what was Day's reaction to a friend late Sunday?

"It was only a matter of time,'' he said long after he holed a six-foot birdie putt on the 72nd hole to defeat Scott Gardiner by a stroke.

Indeed it was.

Now some might interpret Day's remark as cocky, but in truth, it merely serves as a true measuring stick for the massive amount of confidence Day has in himself and his game.

Close observers could see Day's day coming since late March when he made his first Nationwide Tour appearance stateside. He is oozing with ability and blessed with a blue-collar work ethic as well as the desire to fulfill his destiny in professional golf.

"I'm happy for Jason; he's a great player,'' said Gardiner, a fellow Aussie who is 12 years Day's senior. "He is absolutely fearless. I can't say enough good things about him.''

Join the club. The consensus among Nationwide Tour players is that Day owns as much talent as anyone on tour.

As for Day, he received an important message with the win. He felt in control of his game throughout a bogey-free final-round 68, hitting fairway after fairway, green after green.

"I've never had that much control,'' Day allowed, having learned he needed to have patience and not force things like he did at the LaSalle when hovering near the lead. "And ths tells me I can win on any tour.

"I can win anywhere, and I truly believe that. I've been winning junior amateur tournaments (the Australasian Amateur Stroke Play Championship, Australian Junior Championship, Queensland Medal Championship and the 2004 Junior World Golf Championship in San Diego,) for a long time. That gives you the feeling you just know you can do it.

"Winning on this tour was a goal of mine, and my coach, Colin Swatton (who also serves as Day's caddie/chaperone in the United States), told me long ago I'd be the all-time youngest winner.''

Prophecy fulfilled, Day now has his sights on bigger and better things, with playing privileges on the PGA TOUR in 2008 the most prominent on his wish list. He already has had a taste for the action in The Big Show, having received seven sponsor's exemptions in 2006. He showed well, making five cuts and recording two top-15 finishes, with a career-best 11th-place finish at the 2006 Reno-Tahoe Open.

The victory in Cleveland, worth $94,500, certainly will go a long way toward assuring he achieves that '08 goal. Matter of fact, Swatton will be wearing a gold caddie bib with the number '8' stenciled on it, signifying place among 'The 25' on the money list at this week's Price Cutter Charity Championship presented by Dr Pepper, where he will introduced as a Nationwide Tour champion on the first tee Thursday.

"That will feel so awesome,'' Day said. "And it feels good to be inside the top 10 (on the money list). There still are a lot of tournaments left and I've got to keep my focus, but I'm in position now to get where I want to be.''

And that's where every Nationwide Tour player dreams of going, the PGA TOUR.