Matsuyama happy to open floodgates
Star realises dream with Masters crown
Hideki Matsuyama won’t accept the title as Japan’s greatest-ever golfer, but after a quarter-century journey from child novice to historic Masters champion, the usually humble star will accept some praise.
“I can’t say I’m the greatest,” Matsuyama said. “However, I’m the first to win a major, and if that’s the bar, then I’ve set it.”
Matsuyama won the 85th Masters on Sunday, becoming the first Japanese man to win a major title and capping a 25-year dream that started when his father began teaching him the sport when he was only four years old, even switching schools to boost his golf.
Matsuyama became only the second Asian man to win a major title after South Korea’s Yang Yong-Eun at the 2009 PGA Championship.
He took the green jacket symbolic of Masters supremacy, a top prize of US$2.07 million.
“I’m really happy,” he said through a translator. “Hopefully I’ll be a pioneer in this and many other Japanese will follow. I’m happy to open the floodgate and many more will follow me.
“Maybe a lot of younger golfers thought, ‘That’s an impossibility,’ but with me doing it they will realise it is possible and if they set their minds to it they can do it.”
After seeing his seven-stroke lead with seven holes remaining shaved to two shots with three to go, Matsuyama watched American Xander Schauffele find water off the 16th tee on the way to a triple-bogey disaster.
Matsuyama shot a one-over-par 73 and finish 72 holes on 10-under 278.
American Will Zalatoris was second in his Masters debut on 279 after a closing 70 with US three-time major winner Jordan Spieth of the US and Schauffele sharing third on 281.
While the heroics of 15-time major winner Tiger Woods would catch his attention, Matsuyama recalled Japan’s baseball stars having a bigger impact in his youth.
“The people that I admired were mainly baseball players: [Yu] Darvish, [Shohei] Ohtani, [Kenta] Maeda,” Matsuyama said of three Japanese stars now on US Major League Baseball clubs.
“As far as golf, not so much. Hopefully
now others will be inspired for what happened here today and follow in my footsteps.”
Matsuyama’s path took him to Tohoku Fukushi University in Sendai, where he honed the skills he used to win the 2010 Asia-Pacific Amateur Championship and earn a berth at the 2011 Masters.
AMATEUR DOMINANCE
In his first trip to Augusta National, Matsuyama won the Silver Cup as low amateur and shared 27th.
In 2011, he won the World University Games title and led Japan’s gold medal team. He then won the 2011 Asia-Pacific crown as well and placed 54th at the 2012 Masters, becoming the first amateur to make consecutive Masters cuts since Manny Zerman in 1991-92.
Four months later, Matsuyama was named the amateur world No.1. Eight months after that, he turned professional.
Matsuyama shared 10th at the 2013 US Open and cracked the top 50 in the world rankings as a result. In 2014, he won the Jack Nicklaus-hosted Memorial Tournament, the first PGA Tour win by a Japanese golfer in six years.
With his victory at Augusta National, Matsuyama now has six career PGA Tour triumphs, matching the total
achieved by all other Japanese players on the US tour.
In 2016, Matsuyama captured the WGC event at Shanghai.
A year later, he finished second at the US Open and jumped to a career-high second in the world golf rankings. Also in 2017, Matsuyama won his second title at Phoenix and the WGC event in Akron, but that marked his last victory before an 87-start drought that ended with his green jacket.
QUIET BUT DEADLY
In a bid to snap his win drought, Matsuyama began working with coach Hidenori Mezawa.
“The last three years, there have been different probably reasons why I haven’t been able to win,” he said.
“I have a coach with me now from Japan. It has been a great help, a great benefit. Things that I was feeling in my swing, I could talk to him about that, and he always gives me good feedback. He has a good eye.
“It’s like having a mirror for my swing. We worked hard, and hopefully now it’s all starting to come together.”
Matsuyama, followed by Japanese media wherever he plays, pulled it all together for one fabulous week.
“I came to Augusta with little or no expectations, but as the week progressed, as I practised, especially on Wednesday, I felt something again,” he said.
“I found something in my swing. And when that happens, the confidence returns. And so I started the tournament with a lot of confidence.”
He ended it with something new for his wardrobe and a place for the ages in Japanese sporting history.
And among those happiest for his triumph were his rivals.
“Hideki, not only is he at the top, he’s a classy guy,” England’s Paul Casey said.
“He has got a humble attitude about him,” said 2012 US Open winner Webb Simpson.
“Over there he is a big star, but there’s a humility to him that is pretty cool to see in someone who has that much attention on him. Yeah, he’s handled it well. I mean, it’s been a long career already.”
South Africa’s Louis Oosthuizen, the 2010 British Open champion, warns he is quiet but deadly.
“Hideki is obviously quiet. He’s doing his own thing, but it’s all down to business when it comes to the golf course,” Oosthuizen said.
“He’s a fun guy. He’s nice being around with. He’s all around just a great player.” AFP
LEADING FINAL ROUND SCORES
(par-72, USA unless noted)
278 — Hideki Matsuyama (JPN) 69-71-65-73
279 — Will Zalatoris 70-68-71-70
281 — Jordan Spieth 71-68-72-70, Xander Schauffele 72-69-68-72
282 — Jon Rahm (ESP) 72-72-72-66, Marc Leishman (AUS) 72-67-70-73
283 — Justin Rose (ENG) 65-72-72-74
284 — Patrick Reed 70-75-70-69, Corey Conners (CAN) 73-69-68-74
285 — Cameron Smith (AUS) 74-68-73-70, Tony Finau 74-66-73-72