Matsuyama happy to fly under radar

AUGUSTA • The coronavirus has kept all but a few Japanese reporters from the Masters, something that third-round leader Hideki Matsuyama admitted he was very happy about.

With the Japanese, whose seven-under 65 was the best score on Saturday, holding a four-shot lead at 11-under 205 going into the final round, the media attention would have been overwhelming.

While compatriots Hisako Higuchi and Hinako Shibuno have won women's Majors before, turning them into overnight stars in their country, Matsuyama could become the first Japanese male golfer to win a Major.

Having won five PGA Tour titles, he is used to patiently enduring a microscopic level of attention that even Tiger Woods would find wearing, routinely answering a seemingly endless series of mundane questions after every round, whether shooting 65 or 75.

So the 29-year-old, whose last tour victory was in August 2017, was honest enough to acknowledge that it was refreshing to not have to deal with the usual clamour for his attention.

"I'm not sure how to answer this in a good way, but being in front of the media is still difficult," Matsuyama, Japan's most successful golfer, said via his interpreter.

"I'm glad the media are here covering it, but it's not my favourite thing to do, to stand and answer questions. And so with fewer media, it's been a lot less stressful for me, and I've enjoyed this week."

Isao Aoki's runner-up finish to Jack Nicklaus at the 1980 US Open has been the closest to an Asian player winning a Major.

Matsuyama was joint second at the 2017 US Open, though a distant four shots off the pace, but the Green Jacket looks a definite possibility after posting not only his career-low score at Augusta National but also the first bogey-free round of the tournament.

The law of averages suggests one of the quartet - England's Justin Rose (72), Americans Xander Schauffele (68) and Will Zalatoris (71) and Australian Marc Leishman (70) - tied for second on seven-under 209 will have a strong final round, but this could be a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.

Four-shot leads in the modern era are hard to come by for players not named Woods.

Years since Hideki Matsuyama won on the PGA Tour.

Asked what victory on Sunday would mean to his nation, Matsuyama, whose best finish at Augusta was fifth in 2015, found an answer almost as good as the iron shots that he peppered the pins with on the back nine.

"I'm not sure how to answer the question. All I can do is prepare well, try my best, and do the best that I can tomorrow," he said.

The world No. 25 will, however, draw inspiration from an amateur 12 years his junior.

On April 3, 17-year-old Tsubasa Kajitani, who is from Okayama, won this year's Augusta National Women's Amateur tournament.

"It was fantastic," Matsuyama said of the teenager's victory. "I hope I can follow in her shoes and make Japan proud."

REUTERS, NYTIMES, PGATOUR.COM