Posted April 4, 2017, 3:20 pm
BY

nathan.dominitz@savannahnow.com

Matsuyama recalls thrill of watching Woods in ‘97

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Hideki Matsuyama lines up a putt during the first round of the 2016 Tour Championship at East Lake Golf Club, Thursday, Sept. 22, 2016, in Atlanta, Georgia. TODD BENNETT/STAFF

Long before he was a four-time winner on the PGA Tour, and before he was ranked No. 4 in the world and carrying the hopes of Japanese golf fans on his shoulders this week, Hideki Matsuyama was a 5-year-old boy in Japan watching the 1997 Masters.

Matsuyama, 25, doesn’t recall much about his earliest Masters memory. But, like many of us, he remembers Tiger Woods in the final round.

“I was 5 years old, so I didn’t know much about golf, but he sure looked good in that red shirt and black pants,” Matsuyama said Tuesday through a translation by his American manager Bob Turner. “I mean, I can still see it.”

He can also hear it, in the excitement of golf commentators about Woods’ historic victory.

“The one thing I remember about Tiger’s play is how far he hit it and … how the announcers were praising how far he could hit it. That’s what I remember from the first Masters,” said Matsuyama, who is playing in his sixth.

Matsuyama was asked if fans in Japan root harder for him or for Woods when the American was playing regularly on tour.

“I hope they would root for me more than Tiger,” he said, “but I’m not sure.”

Masters Record

Year	Place	Score	Round	Earnings
1	2	3	4
2016	T7	E	71	72	72	73	$ 311,667
2015	5	-11	71	70	70	66	$ 400,000
2014	T68	+7	80	71			$ 10,000
2012	T54	+9	71	74	72	80	$ 0
2011	T27	-1	72	73	68	74	$ 0

Matsuyama recalls thrill of watching Woods in ‘97

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