HIDEKI MATSUYAMA would not have won this year’s Masters with shots like this.
His tee shot at the tenth hole at The Northern Trust was heading right as soon as it left his driver, before bouncing in front of a spectator, up his SHORTS and then into his SHIRT.
The spectator had to remain still while Matsuyama made his way to him from the tee so the ball didn’t become dislodged.
And the man was caught saying on a PGA Tour mic: “It went between my legs, hit my knee, and somehow rolled up into my shirt.”
The 2021 Masters winner Matsuyama then freed the ball from the fan’s shirt, took a free drop, signed the ball for him and was on his way.
Despite the poor shot the 29-year-old Japanese golfer still only bogeyed the par-four tenth hole, but this shot was the main reason for ending a run of five birdies in a row from the fifth to the ninth holes.
Matsuyama is still reasonably well placed through two out of four rounds of The Northern Trust competition at Liberty National Golf Course in New Jersey.
He’s currently T25 through 36 holes at -5 overall after posting a -3 score of 65 in his second round.
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That’s despite finding the inside of a spectator’s shirt at the tenth.
He posted a brilliant -5 through the front nine holes, but things began to unravel after this shot at the tenth.
A TRIPLE-BOGEY at the 18th meant he posted a -3 round of 68 to be -5 overall and T25 at the halfway stage of The Northern Trust competition, seven shots off the lead.
US Open winner John Rahm is currently top of the pile on -12, one shot ahead of Tony Finau in second.
Matsuyama became Japan’s first male Major champion in April, winning the 2021 Masters at Augusta in dramatic fashion.
On the back of that he was hotly tipped to win gold at his home Olympics in Tokyo earlier this summer, but lost out on a medal in heartbreaking fashion.
Matsuyama was part of a SEVEN man battle for bronze in a play-off that included Hideki Matsuyama, Rory McIlroy and Paul Casey, but it was CT Pan of Chinese Taipei who came out on top to claim bronze.
Xander Schauffele took home gold for the USA, with Slovakian Rory Sabbatini winning silver.
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