Matsuyama Yearns for Players Championship Success

Jacksonville, Florida, United States: Hideki Matsuyama would give anything to turn back the clock.

Twelve months ago, the Japanese fired a career low nine-under 63 at The Stadium Course at TPC Sawgrass to lead the first round of The Players Championship, only for the PGA Tour’s flagship tournament to be cancelled hours later due to Covid-19.

The 29-year-old regrets that misfortune and also not utilising his time better at home after the Tour implemented a three-month shutdown, citing Bryson DeChambeau, who re-emerged all bulked up before powering his way to eye-catching wins at the US Open and last week’s Arnold Palmer Invitational presented by Mastercard.

But Matsuyama will get another chance at this week’s US$15 million star-studded event, which continues to showcase one of the strongest fields in golf at the iconic Stadium Course.

The five-time Tour winner said he doesn't dwell too much on what may have happened if last year’s tournament was not disrupted, choosing instead to look forward to another opportunity to challenge for the Players’ title.

“I was able to play well last year, but all of us were put in a pretty difficult position at that moment. I’m just looking forward to another opportunity to play well and compete,” said Matsuyama, a two-time former Asia-Pacific Amateur Championship winner.

“I enjoyed back-to-back top 10s (at The Genesis Invitational and WGC-Mexico Championship last year), but played very poorly at the Arnold Palmer (Invitational), so I wasn’t sure what to expect at The Players and ended up playing very well in the first round. I recall putting in a new putter that week as I had been switching around to different putters and the putter I had worked very well. I was making little adjustments to my putting stroke and I was really hoping to maintain my form.”

Matsuyama’s track record at TPC Sawgrass suggests he can contend again. He finished tied eighth in 2019 and tied seventh in 2016 and has registered three other top-25s in six appearances. His 63 before last year’s cancellation featured an eagle, eight birdies and one bogey.

His annual visit to the Tour’s showpiece event, along with seven consecutive appearances in the FedEx Cup Play-offs finale, the Tour Championship, is a reflection of Matsuyama’s consistency. This season, he has one top-10 and five top-25s but the Japanese star longs to end a four-year winless drought.

“It means a lot each time I get to play. With The Players, if you don’t make the top-125 in the FedEx Cup points list, you don’t get in. It shows how consistent I’ve been and it’s a goal of mine to one day become The Players champion. It's on my list of tournaments I hope to win one day. If that’s something I’m able to accomplish, I’ll be extremely happy,” said Matsuyama, whose best result this season was a runner-up finish at the Houston Open.

“Day-by-day, my game is improving and I feel good about my chances of winning this year. The most important thing is to have everything come together at the right time and I feel pretty good about my chances.”

Reflecting on last year’s shutdown, Matsuyama concedes he could have made better use of his time at home during the hiatus.

He said: “When the cancellation was announced, I felt it was understandable given the circumstance. I was not upset. I realised we were going to have some tough times ahead. At that time, it was reported the Masters was still going to take place so I decided to stay in the States and practice at home (in Orlando), compete in the Masters before going back to Japan.

“When reports (on the pandemic) started to get worse, I realised it was safer to go back to Japan. I had no idea when the season was going to resume and it was difficult to set up a schedule. Even if I did, I didn’t know if it was going to be good for me. Reflecting on the two-month hiatus, I could have utilised the time a little better. I should have made a detailed plan and focused on improving certain parts of my game.

“You can really see the growth from DeChambeau. Looking at him, I feel I have wasted my time. I’m not comparing myself to other people, but when I look back, I think that I should have done this training or worked on that part of my game. It’s not great to regret about the past. But I think it’s important to remember this feeling.”