How Matsuyama locked it up
Brendan Quinn, staff writer: Survival. Of the four-man group to enter the day tied for second at 7 under in the tournament — Schauffele, Leishman, Rose and Zalatoris — only Zalatoris finished the fourth round under par. It was mostly the same story for the day’s other supposed contenders. Of the 17 players to finish T12 or better, only eight players shot under par on Sunday.
Of everyone, Schauffele will carry the heaviest weight away from Augusta National. Looking for the first major victory of his impressive young career, the 27-year-old posted seven birdies on Sunday, including four straight on Nos. 12, 13, 14 and 15, doing more than enough work to track down Matsuyama. Schauffele was done in, though, by a double bogey on the fifth and a triple on the 16th.
What this victory means for Matsuyama and Japan
Josh Kendall, staff writer: The victory comes on the 10-year anniversary of the devastating earthquake and tsunami that killed more than 15,000 Japanese people and devastated the country’s northeastern coast, which is home to Matsuyama’s birthplace of Sendai and university, Tohoku Fukushi, which he was attending at the time of the quake. Tokyo Broadcasting had a reporter following Matsuyama and broadcasting live updates from each hole for a television show that followed his round. “I can’t explain what it means,” said Justin Suzuki, Matsuyama’s personal chef, before taking a moment to compose himself.
Why so much of the field struggled on Sunday
Quinn: Schauffele wasn’t the only one to stumble through stretches through the final round. The easiest explanation is that Augusta National on a Sunday is not only as difficult and pressure-packed as it gets, but everyone contending was in a position of having to make up major ground on Matsuyama. The more one chases, the higher risk the shots that are attempted.
That said, Augusta was clearly dialed up for Sunday. Only four players — Jon Rahm (-6), Tyrrell Hatton (-4), Patrick Reed (-3) and Paul Casey (-3) — shot better than 2 under in the final round. All told, only 17 of 54 players finished under par.
(Photo: Michael Madrid / USA Today)
