A First Victory for Two Years: the Role of Matsuyama’s Support Team

Spring is nearly upon us. The buds are swelling, ready to burst open at any moment. In the world of golf, the Masters—the first major of the season—begins in April.

In 1934, the legendary amateur golfer Bobby Jones hosted the first edition of the Augusta National Invitation Tournament, as the Masters Tournament was formerly known. Since then, the event has attracted the finest golfers of every era to Augusta, Georgia, in the south of the U.S., and bestowed upon the game some of its most memorable moments.

Indeed, the Masters has been the stage on which the “Big Three” of Arnold Palmer, Jack Nicklaus, and Gary Player achieved some of their greatest victories; it was there that the legend of Tiger Woods was born. And in 2021, Hideki Matsuyama became the first Asian-born golfer to don the green jacket.

In the autumn of 2021, Matsuyama won the Zozo Championship in Japan, and followed this up with victory at the Sony Open in Hawaii in January.
However, since turning 30 years old on February 25, 2022, Matsuyama has faced threats to his very future in the game. The neck pain he suffered out of competition grew steadily worse, and he was forced to compete in tournaments in far from his best condition.

Throughout 2023, the 10th year of his participation in the PGA Tour, Matsuyama was never in the running for a single victory, and he managed just two top-ten finishes.
Matsuyama’s proud record in the FedEx Cup points race also came to the end. Up to and including 2022, he had participated in the season-ending Tour Championships, open only to the top thirty players in the points race, for nine consecutive seasons—the most of any active player. But his poor run of form in 2023 meant this run came to an abrupt conclusion.
“I might not win again.”
Those around him feared he was at a turning point in his career—and Matsuyama was beginning to sense this himself.

He therefore set himself the task of carefully rebuilding from the ground up—reestablishing the techniques required to compete at the highest level, but also rehabilitating his physical and mental condition.

Matsuyama entered the 2024 season with a renewed determination. And it was at the Genesis Invitational, where he was competing for a sixth time, that Matsuyama capped his comeback with victory.
Because of the darkness he had endured in 2023, his first victory for two years was all the brighter—for Matsuyama himself, of course, but also for his support team.

When he stepped out onto the back nine on Sunday, there was a five-stroke gap between Matsuyama and the leaders. But with three consecutive birdies starting on the tenth, he upended the situation. It was only after concluding the 13th hole that caddy Shota Hayafuji felt that victory was possible. Level with the leaders, Matsuyama then accelerated. His approaches on the 15th, 16th, and 17th flirted with the pin, setting him up nicely for a further three consecutive birdies. He crossed the finishing line alone in first.

It was a stunning comeback victory.
“Matsuyama seemed to be playing so effortlessly,” recalls Hayafuji. “I just assumed that his rivals would be improving their scores as well, so I prayed he would hole as many birdies as possible. But after looking back over the replays, I realized just how difficult the Riviera Country Club course is. The world’s top 10 were struggling massively.”
Awestruck by Matsuyama’s skill and game management, Hayafuji recognizes that his ninth PGA Tour victory was equally important for his support team.

Matsuyama’s form at the start of 2024 did not necessarily bode well. Despite making cuts, he was unable to string together the series of low scoring rounds required to compete for victory. His incredible victory in Los Angeles might therefore appear from the outside as if it had come out of the blue.

But it was clear to those closest to him that Matsuyama was in superior physical condition to 2023, and that he was better able to dedicate himself to practice.

Matsuyama also relied on his team for emotional support when results did not follow expectations.“After taking a break in autumn last year, it was as if a switch had suddenly turned on,” Matsuyama explains. “I felt a burning desire to win again. But I wasn’t able to turn this renewed determination into results. When I was feeling down, my team were always positive, constantly pushing me forward, insisting: ‘next time, next time.’”

Golf is an individual sport, but it resembles a team sport in many respects: in addition to his caddy, Matsuyama has a trainer to look after his physical conditioning, he employs a manager, he works with his club manufacturer and, since he competes overseas, he requires the services of an interpreter, too.

Coach Mikihito Kuromiya has accompanied Matsuyama full-time on tour since 2023. He is the same age as Matsuyama, and as a university student he was one of the leading amateurs of his generation.

Drawing on his experience coaching everyone from juniors to Tour professionals, and using his extensive knowledge of swing mechanics and other technical fundamentals, Kuromiya works with Matsuyama to improve his skillset. At Tour events, the two of them can often be seen in conversation on the practice range.

“We have to remember that it is Matsuyama himself who has the most difficult job,” says Kuromiya. “He has to cope with the intense atmosphere of the PGA Tour, and play under the gaze of a gallery that is forever demanding the very best shots. It is our duty as members of his support team to ensure he is protected—we must do our very best.”

Finding the optimal balance between the extraordinary sensitivity that professional golfers possess and objective, data-driven facts is a never-ending process. Matsuyama and his support team are not always in agreement, but because they all share the same ultimate goal, even their conflicts prove constructive.

The importance of understanding prevailing trends, and of embracing sophisticated and advanced solutions is not unique to golf—it is equally important in the world inhabited by NTT DATA. Just like Matsuyama’s support team, NTT DATA comprises experts in diverse fields who work together to solve various issues; and, recognizing the needs of their clients, use optimal technologies to ensure their success.

Matsuyama has succeeded in making the comeback that many people had been hoping for. But Matsuyama’s journey—and the journey of his support team—has not finished. “Both I and the members of my support team realize that we must continue grow. We are all focused on a single, shared goal: for me to win.”

This season, Matsuyama will undertake the challenge of winning his second-ever major, three years after his first. Surrounded by a team that he trusts, Matsuyama is ready to do battle.