How Golfer Hideki Matsuyama Just Made History
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By Melissa Willets/April 12, 2021 1:35 pm EST
Matsuyama just became the first male golfer from Japan to win a major tournament. But the pro golfer still had his modesty intact — when asked if he was the greatest Japanese golfer of all time, he humbly replied, “I can’t say I’m the greatest, however, I’m the first to win a major and if that’s the bar then, I’ve [set] it” (via Olympic Channel).
He also noted about young Japanese kids watching his victory, “It’s thrilling to think that there are a lot of youngsters in Japan watching today, and in five, ten years when they get a little older hopefully some of them will be competing on a world stage, but I still have a lot of years left so they’re still going to have to compete against me.”
Hideki Matsuyama just made history but other Asian golfers have come before him
It’s important to note that two Japanese women golfers have also previously taken home titles, with Chako Higuchi and Hinako Shibuno winning major tournaments in 1977, and then not again until 2019, respectively (via The Ringer).
