Masters champion Hideki Matsuyama is headed back to Japan and his green jacket is coming with him. Here is Matsuyama, spotted at Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport in Atlanta, hours after winning his first major.
No private jets or luxury lounges for this guy. Matsuyama, seen scrolling through his phone in general boarding while waiting for his connecting flight to Chicago, is a true man of the people. Not wanting to risk his Masters jacket getting lost in baggage, Matsuyama draped it over his chair (though he doesn’t appear to be keeping a particularly close eye on it) and was also seen carrying it through the terminal at Hartfield-Jackson.
The 29-year-old should enjoy the jacket while it lasts, because eventually, he’ll have to return it to its permanent home at Augusta National. After his win in 2018, Patrick Reed toured the country with his jacket, wearing it everywhere from Madison Square Garden to Minute Maid Park in Houston.
Matsuyama didn’t play his best golf Sunday, splashing his second shot on 15 while also missing a makeable par putt on the clinching 18th hole. But his final-round 73 was just enough to eke out a one-stroke victory over runner-up Will Zalatoris, vaulting him from 25th to 14th in the World Rankings. Prior to Sunday's win, Matsuyama’s best showing at Augusta came in 2015 when he finished fifth, seven shots back of that year’s champion, Jordan Spieth.
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