Hideki Takes The Masters!

Hideki claims overdue win for golf mad Japanese

Golf in Japan started at the beginning of the last century thanks to Englishman Arthur Hesketh Groom who was bored with other outdoor pursuits and helped found Kobe Golf Club in 1903. The area today is now more famous for it’s beef and Zerofit baselayers, but it was in Kobe that the Japanese first fell in love with golf. Over one hundred years later it now finally has a male major champion in Hideki Matsuyama. Isao Aoki, Tommy Nakajima and Jumbo Ozaki all had chances over the course of the last forty years to claim a major win but were unable to do so.

It is hard to estimate what this win will do for the development of golf in Japan, it is already a major sport in the country with over 10 million participants, it is also home to major golf brands such as Mizuno and Srixon who play a significant part in the global golf industry. If nothing else it will ensure that golf will enjoy a high media profile for the Tokyo Olympics, this in turn will see golf on terrestrial television screens around the world.

Finally what was very refreshing to see was the degree of humility Matsuyama and his caddie portrayed in the aftermath of his triumph, something that will have gone down awfully well with the Augusta faithful.