How a putter change powered Hideki Matsuyama to his 10th PGA Tour title
21/08/2024 18:45
On the PGA TOUR, Hideki Matsuyama doesn’t hesitate to test several putters in a short space of time.
He usually brings five or six with him to each event.
It was the same in the FedEx St. Jude Championship, but he chose to utilise a different strategy this time around and it proved to be crucial on Sunday in helping him claim his 10th TOUR victory.
Matsuyama, who has already won this season at The Genesis Invitational, led by five strokes after three rounds of the St. Jude, combining exceptional ball-striking with a scorching putter.
But Matsuyama rode the new putter to victory on Sunday’s water-filled back nine at TPC Southwind.
"Coming into Memphis, I felt like I needed a change of pace, kind of a refresh with my putter," Matsuyama said after winning the opening leg of the FedExCup Playoffs.
"I thought about the putters I had, and I felt because I knew this course, I knew the condition of the greens, I thought this putter might work, and it did. I putted great, and I won."
Matsuyama started Sunday’s round with seven straight pars.
On the par-3 eighth, he sunk a 38-foot birdie putt, and on the 11th, he made another from 19 feet.
But down the stretch he blew his lead with bogeys on the 12th and 14th holes and a double bogey at the 15th.
Matsuyama needed something to get back on track and he found it, rolling in a 26-footer and fist-pumping as the ball fell into the cup.
On the challenging 18th, he completed the victory with another birdie, making the second closest putt of the day at the formidable finishing hole.
In striking contrast to his season ranking of 133rd place for Strokes Gained: Putting, Matsuyama gained nearly eight strokes on the greens in Memphis, finishing at 17-under total, two shots ahead of a resurgent Viktor Hovland and the ever-present Xander Schauffele.
"For some reason when I was at home in Orlando coming to this tournament, I just started feeling that this putter may work on these greens," Matsuyama said after the final round.
The winning putter is a Scotty Cameron Craftsman Squareback Tour Prototype.
"I’ve had the putter for a while, and I thought, well, it might be a good week to debut that putter," Matsuyama said.
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