Hit it like Hideki Matsuyama: His winning moment at the Sony Open and what makes his swing great
Matsuyama is back inside the world's top 10 after a dramatic success at the Sony Open, where he produced a shot-of-the-year contender to set up a tournament-winning eagle; watch the Masters champion in action this week at the Farmers Insurance Open, live from Wednesday on Sky Sports Golf
By Chris Cox, PGA Tour
Last Updated: 25/01/22 12:52pm
Hideki Matsuyama returns to action this week at the Farmers Insurance Open, having already produced a shot-of-the-year contender to win the Sony Open earlier this month.
While the eight-time PGA Tour winner made his winning playoff shot at the Sony Open in Hawaii seem elementary enough, the reality is that few others on Tour this season are likely to replicate what the Japanese player was able to do in that moment at Waialae Country Club.
"A perfect number for me, a cut 3-wood, 276 yards left to right, follow wind," Matsuyama said, flatly, making the shot sound so simple and so frustratingly easy.
From 276 yards out and with the sun beaming in his eyes, Matsuyama landed his ball on the green finishing just over two feet from the hole to give him a stirring comeback win over Russell Henley. It was the closest approach shot all week at the par-five 18th hole and the closest on Sunday to that pin position by more than five feet.
"The thing about Hideki that stands out is that his rhythm is always really good, even under the utmost pressure," said Todd Anderson, director of instruction at the PGA Tour's Performance Center at TPC Sawgrass, home of The Players.
"He made a motion that was in his rhythm. Most people don't do that under pressure. Something usually speeds up or doesn't sync up. With him maintaining that almost exaggerated slowness to his transition really allowed him to execute the shot that way."
Sure, lots of TOUR professionals can hit the ball 270 yards, but "most have lower bullet trajectories that would come in low and roll over the green," Anderson noted. To hit it as high and as soft as Matsuyama did and have it come in that softly on the green isn't something fans are likely to see very often, he added.
But perhaps the most impressive aspect of the shot to Anderson-who has worked with Tour pros including Billy Horschel and Brandt Snedeker, among others-was what preceded it.
"The thing that was even more incredible was, off the tee he had to hit a draw around the corner of the dogleg then on the second shot hit a cut three-wood to a right hole location and he hit them both perfectly," Anderson said. "Most guys have one shot shape they're really good at and one they're not as so good at. It was amazing how Hideki was able trust his ability to execute both shot shapes."
Certainly, the average 20-handicapper is not likely to mimic Matsuyama's epic approach shot. But they can still manage to hit a fade just like the Masters champion managed to pull off.
"The biggest thing people need to understand about hitting a fade is the club face has to be open relative to the path you're swinging on," Anderson explained. "In other words, for Hideki, he aimed his body left of the target and had the face looking right of where his body was aligned, and he just swung along his body line to make the ball curve right."
When setting up for a straight shot the club face is perpendicular to your body alignment. So when hitting a fade, rotate the body to the left but keep the club face to the right - if the face follows the body you will just be aiming left.
The simplest way to think of it, Anderson said, is to set up normally and then move your feet, knees, hips and shoulders to the left. This will leave the club face looking slightly to the right of where your body line is. From there, swing parallel to your body while allowing the club face to stay open.
"If you can get the face looking where you want the ball to finish and get your body where you want it to start, and you can swing in that area parallel to your body, the ball is going to naturally curve," he said. "If you get the face looking left of where you're swinging, you'll hit a pull. And if you don't swing parallel to your body or your face is too open, you're going to hit a push. So you have to match those things up."
The other thing to keep in mind while hitting a fade is to always look/focus on where on you want the ball to start, not where you want it to finish.
"If you start letting your eyes go to the pin you're going to tend to swing out to the right, so you won't be swinging parallel to your body and you're going to hit a push cut," Anderson added. "You want to create a hallway between where you want the ball to start and where you want it to finish."
Last but certainly not least, remain committed to your shot and make a decisive swing. That's what Matsuyama did, and it seemed to work out for him.
Follow Anderson on Twitter @ToddAndersonTPC, and watch Matsuyama every week on Sky Sports Golf. Matsuyama is in action at the Farmers Insurance Open, live from Wednesday January 26 on Sky Sports!
