Hideki Matsuyama is working with a brand new caddie on the FedEx St. Jude Championship.
Getty Photos
Hideki Matsuyama obtained robbed. He misplaced his pockets. And his coach. And his caddie.
However not his golf recreation.
Matsuyama spoke to the media on Thursday after his opening spherical on the FedEx St. Jude Championship and detailed what has amounted to a wierd couple weeks. After incomes a bronze medal on the Paris Olympics, Matsuyama and his crew — his caddie Shota Hayafuji and his coach Mikihito Kuromiya — had determined to spend one evening in London. They had been at dinner downtown, he mentioned, after they observed one thing was lacking.
“We didn’t even understand it occurred. We had been simply having a pleasant dinner, and Shota was the primary one: ‘hey, the place is my bag?’ After all it was irritating, however we actually didn’t understand it occurred. It was simply sort of swiftly.”
The perpetrator, Matsuyama mentioned, “simply took it and ran.”
A journey nightmare ensued.
“It was an unlucky state of affairs,” Matsuyama mentioned. “Fortunately I solely misplaced my pockets, however Shota, my caddie, and [my] coach misplaced their passports, and we’re making an attempt exhausting now to get their visas again in line, and hopefully we will be a part of us as a crew as quickly as attainable.”
There’s no good time for a stolen passport, and given the spot within the schedule, this can be a notably vital time for Matsuyama to be taking part in his greatest. After his third-place Olympic end, he’s been hoping to hold some momentum into the ultimate three occasions of the PGA Tour season; at No. 8 within the FedEx Cup standings he’s all however assured to make it to East Lake, the place he’ll hope to problem for the finale’s $18 million prize.
Within the meantime, his coach and caddie returned to Japan, the place they’ll work on alternative passports. Hayafuji, Matsuyama mentioned, could make it to the U.S. in time for the Tour Championship. Kuromiya probably gained’t.
However Matsuyama, nonetheless in possession of his passport, was nonetheless capable of journey to Memphis, Tenn. to fill out this week’s 70-man area at TPC Southwind. And he was capable of safe a last-minute caddie, Taiga Tabuchi, who usually caddies for Ryo Hisatsune. With Hisatsune out of the playoffs, this was purported to be an off-week for Tabuchi. However when Matsuyama calls, you reply.
“He’s, like, the most effective Asian participant, so I used to be excited to take the provide,” Tabuchi advised the Industrial Attraction in an interview right here. “I additionally caddie for Ryo Hisatsune, and he and Hideki have performed apply rounds collectively, so I do know Hideki very properly. So, I believe that’s why he supplied me.”
The visible of Matsuyama with out his longtime caddie (who you’d acknowledge from his iconic bow on the 18th inexperienced after Matsuyama’s Masters win) took some getting used to — even for him.
“Type of jogged my memory of the primary time Shota was on my bag. We sort of labored by way of a pair issues. Actually that was the primary factor as we speak is having teamwork with my caddie,” he mentioned.
The remainder of his recreation, however, regarded fairly acquainted. After a rocky begin — he discovered the water on the par-5 third gap to fall to 1 over par — he hit it properly and had a terrific day on the greens, main the sphere in strokes gained placing en path to a seven-birdie five-under 65 that places him in second place after the primary spherical, one shot behind chief Chris Kirk.
However the theft, he says, he’s “forgotten utterly.” How has he averted the distraction? Matsuyama made it sound easy.
“My job is identical. It’s simply play golf,” he mentioned. “I speak to my coach each evening on the telephone. I’ve obtained an incredible caddie. Taiga did an incredible job as we speak, so we’ll simply see the way it goes.”
Only one closing thriller, then: with their wallets every stolen, how’d they pay for the invoice at dinner?
“We’d already paid the verify,” Matsuyama mentioned.
In different phrases, they couldn’t even sneak a free meal out of the deal. But when Matsuyama retains up this stage of play, he’ll be capable to purchase a brand new pockets — and a pleasant verify to tuck inside it.
