The Masters: Hideki Matsuyama survives late mistakes to win first men’s major for Japan

Hideki Matsuyama overcame a nervy begin and a pressure-induced back-nine stutter to turn out to be the first Japanese participant to win a men’s major with a one-shot victory on the eighty fifth Masters

His in a single day four-stroke lead was rapidly diminished to one when he bogeyed the first and Will Zalatoris began with a pair of birdies, however Matsuyama restored his composure and seemed set for a back-nine procession when he led by six with seven holes to play.

But Xander Schauffele then made 4 straight birdies from the twelfth whereas Matsuyama made an enormous error along with his second to the fifteenth, airmailing the inexperienced along with his adrenaline-fueled second and discovering the water over the again, main to a bogey-six which had his lead whittled down to simply two.

However, Schauffele then took an aggressive line to the brief sixteenth and got here up a fraction brief, his ball kicking left, lacking the bunker and discovering the lake, easing the strain on the long-time chief as he knocked a protected tee shot to the precise facet of the inexperienced, though he then three-putted from the highest tier.

Schauffele compounded his preliminary error by going over the again of the inexperienced along with his third and he wanted three extra to get down, working up a triple-bogey six which ended his Masters hopes for one other 12 months, whereas Matsuyama seemed to regroup having slipped to 11 underneath with Zalatoris within the clubhouse on 9 underneath par.

The chief steadied himself with a rock-solid par on the seventeenth, hammered an ideal drive up the final earlier than inflicting himself extra consternation when he blocked his tentative strategy into the bunker to the precise of the inexperienced.

But he was all smiles moments later after forking out to six ft, and lacking the par putt mattered little as he left a tap-in for a momentous win, 10 years on from his first go to to the Butler Cabin because the main newbie within the 2011 Masters.

Any expectations of coasting to victory have been quashed as early because the opening gap, when Matsuyama carved a fairway-wood approach proper and began with a 5, simply after Zalatoris had made birdie on the second from the entrance bunker to shut inside one.

But the American erred on the subsequent and Matsuyama replied with a 4 of his personal on the second, and he was content material to grind out the pars as his rivals fell away one after the other, with Jordan Spieth, Justin Rose and Marc Leishman unable to match the scoring of Jon Rahm, who raced spherical in 66 to shut on six underneath.

Matsuyama pulled additional forward with birdies on the eighth and ninth to go 5 clear on the flip, though he wouldn’t get by means of Amen Corner unscathed as he dropped his second shot of the day on the twelfth, solely to get it again at thirteenth regardless of a wild drive and a pulled second that threatened to disappear into the Azaleas.

The 29-year-old pitched it shut and made the putt to get again to 13 underneath within the midst of Schauffele’s valiant cost, which got here to an abrupt halt three holes from house.

Matsuyama’s three-putt was rapidly forgotten with some of the helpful pars of his profession on the penultimate gap, and one poor shot on the final didn’t have an effect on the result as he joined YE Yang because the second Asian man to acquire a major title.

His 71 was simply sufficient to pip Zalatoris (70) into second place, whereas a deflated Schauffele parred 17 and 18 to signal for a 72 which left him in a share of second with 2015 champion Spieth, who was too far again to make a major problem after enjoying the first eight holes in two over.

Speaking by means of a translator, Matsuyama mentioned: “I’m really happy. My nerves didn’t start on the second nine, it was right from the start and right to the very last putt.

“I used to be interested by my household all the best way spherical as we speak and I’m actually comfortable that I performed nicely for them.

“Hopefully I’ll be a pioneer in this and many other Japanese will follow and I’m glad to be able to open the floodgates hopefully and many more will follow me.”

Spieth did rally with a birdie at 9 and a back-nine 33 to shut on seven underneath and earn his fifth top-three end in eight Masters appearances, with Rahm’s red-hot end propelling him into the highest 5 alongside Leishman.

Long-time chief Rose’s hopes of stepping into the combination have been scuppered when he bogeyed three of the first 5 holes, the two-time runner-up labouring to a 74 to drop to 5 underneath, one forward of 2018 champion Patrick Reed and Canada’s Corey Conners.