Talented and willing to toil
ALBANY: Dustin Johnson, 32, and Hideki Matsuyama, 24, are separated by as much as eight years in terms of age, and in either case their talent has never been in question from the time they made their professional debut. But it is only in 2016 that they are emerging as superstars.
Going into the weekend, the two are tied for the lead at 12-under at the World Challenge in Albany, Bahamas.
Johnson calls 2016 the best year of his life, as does Matsuyama. This year alone Johnson has three wins, three other top-3s and eight more top-10s, while Matsuyama has four wins, two other top-3s and five other top10s.
Talking of streaks, Matsuyama is in the midst of a brilliant one, with three wins , one second and one tied-5th in his last five starts, while Johnson experienced a similar mind-boggling seven-week streak in June-July, when he won twice (at the US Open and WGC Bridgestone in successive starts), three other top-5 and one top-10 in six starts.
Both have been prodigious, but neither has been working as hard as they have been recently. On Wednesday, long after everyone had left the course at Albany, Matsuyama was working on his putting. Johnson puts in a lot more hours at the range, and fitness studios.
Much as they are feted for their talent, streaks and momentum, neither Johnson nor Matsuyama were role models in terms of discipline.
Before turning pro, Matsuyama though talented was brazen. In Japan, he once missed a collegiate golf meeting because he overslept. Little over a year later, he turned pro and won four titles, becoming the first rookie to win the Japan Money List.
Johnson was the first golfer since Tiger Woods to win at least once in each of his first seven years as a pro, from 2007 to 2014.
Then came a break --- his hard partying caught up. In mid-2014, Johnson took ‘indefinite’ leave from the Tour, saying he needed time off to seek “professional help for personal challenges”.
He returned in 2015 and from then on has been knocking on the doors of a Major win, and they finally opened at the US Open this June. Now, Johnson, world No 3, and Matsuyama, world No 6, are battling it out with the very best and holding their own, as they are at the World Challenge this week.