Asian legends tip Matsuyama to enjoy golden run

If Hideki Matsuyama beats the strongest field in golf and becomes the first Japanese winner at The Players Championship this week, those who blazed the trail for Asian golf before him will be the least surprised.

Matsuyama, who is now the winningest Asian golfer on the PGA Tour with nine victories, makes his ninth start at The Players Stadium Course at TPC Sawgrass on Thursday with his sights set firmly on the coveted swinging golfer trophy. This comes with winning the Tour’s flagship $25-million showpiece. The  Players celebrates its 50th anniversary this week.

The 32-year-old Asian superstar holds three top-10s at The Players, including a solo fifth last year, a career-best 63 at TPC Sawgrass, which he shot in the first round in 2020 before the event was cancelled, and has won once and finished T12 in his last two starts.

Last month, he rewrote a page in golf history by breaking a tie with K.J. Choi of Korea for most victories by an Asian player after a closing 62 saw him erase a six-shot deficit and win the Genesis Invitational by three. The stars were out at Riviera back then, and are gathered here again at TPC Sawgrass, often touted as the purest test in golf. 

Choi, who now plays on PGA Tour Champions, said: “My first memory of Hideki was that he was different. If I had to describe him, he is like a jumbo jet, like something I really want to buy. All his attributes, the impact when hit hits a golf ball, his posture and the way he treats others are different about him. He has the right fundamentals. I knew if he kept these qualities consistently, he would be a great player. There is something special about him.”

After Matsuyama surpassed Shigeki Maruyama with a fourth PGA Tour victory in early 2017, the latter set his younger compatriot a lofty goal to reach nine wins, one more than the mark held by Choi. Maruyama now expects Matsuyama to also raise his major tally following an historic 2021 Masters triumph which sent Japan golf into a delirium.

In a video message, Maruyama said: “You and I have spoken and made promises about becoming the winningest Asian player, and now you’ve broken the record. You already have one major, and now the next goal should be