HIDEKI’S A MAJOR THREAT TO SPIETH
There’s not much uncharted territory left in golf so the fact that no Japanese player has won a major championship represents a notable remaining frontier.
At the UsPGA Championship at Quail hollow this week, no Japanese player in history will be so heavily favoured to complete the feat than world No 2 hideki Matsuyama, following his enormously impressive victory in the WGC-Bridgestone Invitational last night.
Just 23, he shot a fabulous final round 61 — equalling the course record held by Tiger Woods, sergio Garcia and Jose-Maria Olazabal — to blow away a highclass leaderboard and win by five shots for his sixth victory worldwide in less than a year.
he now owns two of the WGC titles that sit one rung below the majors, following his victory in the Champions tournament in shanghai last November.
Matsuyama has also finished in the top 15 in each of the three majors staged so far this year, so this might well be his time.
Then again, it might well be rory McIlroy’s, at least according to Jordan spieth, who installed the Northern Irishman as favourite for the PGA after playing alongside him in the first two rounds.
McIlroy certainly looks a lot like his old self following a difficult summer and threatened a run for this title after birdieing three of his first six holes. But an untidy bogey at the ninth removed the wind from his sails and he had to settle for a tie for fifth place, after a 69, with england’s Paul Casey and scot russell Knox. still, four rounds in the sixties heading to the season’s final major represented a good week’s work, although it is blindingly obvious what still needs improving. such was the majesty of his driving he left himself with around 35 approach shots of 125 yards or less, for the week. Only 40 per cent of those finished inside 15ft.
‘I think it did get better as the week went on and now I’m excited to get to Quail hollow,’ said McIlroy. When spiethh strolled from thee direction of thee practice ground, , through the e massed throng of spectatorstt i in the direction of the first tee, his playing partner Matt Kuchar could have been forgiven a feeling of deja vu.
At least on this occasion the genial soul from Georgia wasn’t having to stand around for 20 minutes while spieth made such a journey, unlike on the 13th hole at Birkdale.
As if to demonstrate the golfing gods have no mercy, Kuchar shot a fine 66 on saturday only to be rewarded with an afternoon alongside spieth and four hours that must have been filled with memories he’d simply rather forget. Take spieth’s drive at the second, a wicked hook tha that would have l left ft hi him ini deepd trouble but for the fact it struck some poor spectator who unwittingly knocked it back into play. Kuchar has seen that movie before, hasn’t he?
Not that there was any ill-will towards the man who wrenched the Claret Jug so mercilessly from his arms with his brazen, brilliant finish in southport. That’s just not Kuchar’s way. There was a gentle bumping of knuckles on the first tee and a sincere exchange of pleasantries.
Then the first tee announcer stepped forward and kindly refrained from rubbing Kuchar’s nose in it by simply referring to spieth as from the United states, rather than the more customary ‘Champion Golfer.’
Kuchar’s caddie John Wood caught the spirit after spieth missed from 8ft for a birdie at the first. ‘Where was that at Birkdale?’ he said, with a huge grin on his face, to spieth’s bag man Michael Greller.
For spieth, conversely, this was the perfect way to spend his last competitive round before his audacious assault on the history books later this week, when he will attempt to win the PGA and so become the youngest man to complete the career grand slam.
how could the sight of Kuchar not stir memories of his finest day, and leave him in a feelgood frame of mind before the unfor- giving glare of the sporting spotlight descends?
Kuchar again established an early lead over spieth, only to be clawed back. At the last, Kuchar had an 8ft putt to finish on the same 72 hole mark as spieth but that slipped past the hole. Both finished up with rounds of 68, with spieth finishing tied 13th.
‘There’s an awful lot I can take out of this week,’ said the 24-yearold. ‘I have a really good idea of what I need to practise and improve and now it’s about going out and doing it.’
As for Kuchar, it’s not all bad news. The tied 17th place finish nudged his career earnings from 397 events to a shade over $41million. Who says being a nice guy doesn’t pay?