Hideki Matsuyama made history on Sunday as the first male golfer from Japan to win a major championship.
Ten years after making a sterling debut as the best amateur at Augusta National, Matsuyama claimed the ultimate trophy with a victory in the Masters.
Matsuyama, 29, closed with a 1-over 73 and a 1-shot victory that was close only at the end and was never seriously in doubt after Xander Schauffele‘s late charge ended with a triple bogey on the par-3 16th.
So masterful was this performance that Matsuyama stretched his lead to 6 shots on the back nine until a few moments of drama. With a 4-shot lead, he went for the green in two on the par-5 15th, and the ball bounded hard off the back slope and into the pond on the 16th hole.
Matsuyama did well to walk away with a bogey, and with Schauffele making a fourth straight birdie, the lead was down to 2 shots with three to play.
The next swing all but ended it. Schauffele’s tee shot on the par-3 16th bounced off the hill and dribbled into the pond. His third shot from the drop area went into the gallery. He wound up with a triple-bogey 6.
Never mind that Matsuyama bogeyed three of his last four holes to become the first Masters champion with a final round over par since Trevor Immelman shot 75 in 2008.