The first playoff of the PGA Tour this season, the St. Jude Classic, has just concluded. Paris Olympic bronze medalist Hideki Matsuyama has once again achieved great results, standing out from the 70-player elite field with a total score of -17, winning the championship prize of $3.6 million and his second victory of the season (the first victory was the Genesis Invitational)! He was also crowned the PGA Tour's ten-time champion! His FedEx Cup ranking has also jumped to third place (only behind Schaufler and Schauffele), and he will sprint for the championship.
Galileo sports- trusted globally for golf nets and golf cages - is here to dive into the secrets behind the10th PGA Tour champion .
It is worth mentioning that before winning the championship this week, Matsuyama also encountered a small episode before the game! After winning the bronze medal in Paris, Matsuyama Hideki and his caddie Shota Hayato (the one who helped Matsuyama win the 2021 Masters and left a famous scene of taking off his hat to thank him after winning the championship at Augusta) and coach Kuromiya Kanjin, during their stay in London to transfer back to the United States to participate in the playoffs, were robbed while eating in the city center...
In the end, Matsuyama's caddie and coach had to return to Japan to apply for documents because they lost their passports. It is expected that they will return to the United States only after the playoffs finals. Matsuyama Hideki left his medals and passport in the hotel, so he did not delay his trip. This week, he temporarily borrowed the caddie of Hisayoshi Kuroda, who did not enter the playoffs, to compete in the St. Jude Classic with a total prize of 20 million US dollars.
Despite the unexpected incident, it did not affect Hideki Matsuyama's condition. The Japanese star continued to score low scores at TPC Nanfeng. After three rounds, his total score was -17 (65-64-64), leading by 5 strokes. However, in the final round that just ended, Matsuyama's firepower was not as fierce as in the previous few days. He suffered two hole breaks and a double break on the 15th hole, and almost suffered a reversal. Fortunately, he caught 4 birdies, including two consecutive birdies at the end, and finished with 70 strokes, which was even par. The total score was still -17. In the end, relying on the score advantage accumulated before, he won by two strokes!
(Best ball of the moving day: precise guidance from 260 yards! Matsuyama then captured the eagle here)
A bold attack on the flag from 260 yards away, the ball stopped less than five yards away from the hole. The Paris Olympic bronze medalist's wonderful shot on the 3rd hole of this round is the epitome of his excellent state. Hideki Matsuyama handed over 1 eagle, 5 birdies and 1 bogey on the mobile day -6. With this best score in a single round, he took a lead of as many as five strokes.
It was the PGA Tour's largest 54-hole lead of the season. The score of 193 (65-64-64) also set a new record for Matsuyama in 54 holes.
Hideki Matsuyama played with his temporary caddy and ranked first in many key statistics: second in the field in strokes gained on greens (6.849), first in strokes gained in putting (6.893), and in total strokes scored First overall (14.142).
Matsuyama, who has entered the final round as the leader for the seventh time, will strive to win his second win this season (first win: Genesis Invitational) and the tenth championship in his career. His pre-match FedEx standings ranking was eighth, and his current real-time projected ranking has risen to third, putting him in the first echelon of contenders for the championship.
The top group of this match is full of stars. After the rising star Dunlap handed in -4, he rose to the second place with a total score of -12. According to the real-time simulation of the PGA Tour official, his chance of winning is 5.1%, second only to Hideki Matsuyama (86.7%). The defending champion of the FedEx Cup, Hovland, also played -4, and rose to the third place with a total score of -11. He and Dunlap were both ranked outside the top 50 in the pre-match standings, and they are expected to advance to the second stop of the playoffs, the BMW Championship.
"The world's No. 1 man" Scheffler handed in -1 in this round, and with a total score of -10, he ranked T4 with his friend Boones (E in this round). The Paris Olympic gold medalist has a 3.2% chance of winning his seventh PGA Tour victory this season.
The only player who has a chance to shake Scheffler's top spot in this round is Xander Schauffele (-3 in this round), who is ranked second. He is currently ranked eighth with a total score of -8, and his chance of winning is only 0.2%. Dunny McCarthy, the 36-hole co-leader, was in a decline this round. He scored +2 and ranked T6 with a total score of -9. He will undergo hip surgery in the offseason. Will Saratoris, who is gradually recovering from a back injury, is also ranked T6. He scored -3 in this round. In the second half of the leaderboard, three-time FedEx Cup champion McIlroy scored +4 in this round and ranked T66 with a total score of +5. The real-time expected ranking in the standings dropped to fourth (third before the game).
Jordan Spieth, the 2015 champion (+4 in this round), ranked 69th with a total score of +7, and the real-time expected ranking in the standings came to 66th, which is still a long way from the "playoff qualifying line" of the top 50.
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