Hideki Matsuyama bogeyed his final hole on Sunday at the WM Phoenix Open and then went on to lose the playoff against Chris Gotterup.
Matsuyama didn’t have his best stuff during the final round of the WM Phoenix Open, but he chipped and putted incredibly well.
The 33-year-old Japanese star is one of the streakiest players on the PGA Tour.
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When he’s on, he’s as good as anyone but when his swing is slightly off, the end result is not a pretty sight.
Matsuyama is one of the nicest players on the PGA Tour and he is highly respected amongst his peers and golf fans alike.
Unfortunately for the man from Japan, he had to deal with a really unfortunate incident on the 18th tee during his playoff against Chris Gotterup.
What really happened, though?
The truth behind Hideki Matsuyama incident during Phoenix Open playoff
After Gotterup bombed his driver 350 yards down the middle of the fairway, the pressure was piled onto Matsuyama’s shoulders.
The 2021 Masters champion addressed the ball, completed his backswing and just as he started his downswing he pulled up just like Tiger Woods famously used to do in his prime.
There was real commotion behind the 18th tee and Matsuyama looked rattled, understandably so.
At the time, everyone thought a fan had shouted something in the Japanese star’s direction.
However, the truth has now been revealed, thanks to the brilliant Gabby Herzig.
She took to her X account on Sunday evening to clarify what really happened at TPC Scottsdale.
Herzig explained: “Wow. Sounds like what distracted Hideki this time was a security person accidentally dropping a chair right as he started his backswing.
“It basically sounded like metal hitting concrete. Not pleasant.“
It’s actually really good to know that a fan didn’t purposely try to sabotage Matsuyama at the Phoenix Open.
Hideki Matsuyama’s driving the real reason for WM Phoenix Open woes
The 11-time PGA Tour winner ranked inside the top three in all categories at TPC Scottsdale last week, except one.
He was ranked second in both strokes gained approach and around the greens, third in strokes gained putting and tied first strokes gained total.
However, his driving was really poor all week long in the desert.
Matsuyama was ranked 70th in strokes gained off the tee at the WM Phoenix Open, losing just over 4.8 shots on the field.
The 33-year-old will definitely have to address his driving weaknesses if he wants to win the biggest tournaments this season.
If Matsuyama does somehow manage to fix his driving, he genuinely could challenge Scottie Scheffler this season, such is the quality of the rest of his game.
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