LOS ANGELES (AFP) — Japan’s Hideki Matsuyama fired nine birdies in a scintillating nine-under-par 62 on Sunday to rally from six shots back for a three-stroke victory in the Genesis Invitational at The Riviera Country Club.
Matsuyama, the 2021 Masters champion, notched his ninth US PGA Tour title, breaking a tie with South Korean KJ Choi for most by a player from Asia.
It was all the more meaningful coming more than two years after his most recent title at the 2022 Sony Open, and after a neck injury left him fearing he might not win again.
“Reaching nine wins was one of my big goals, passing KJ Choi,” Matsuyama said.
“After my eighth win I’ve been struggling with my injury. There were a lot of times I felt I was never going to win again, I struggled to finish top-10.”
“I’m really happy I was able to win today,” added Matsuyama, who unleashed a mighty fist-pump when his last putt dropped on the 18th. His 62 is the lowest closing round ever for a tournament winner at Riviera.
Tap-in birdies at the 15th and 16th had seen the Japanese star break free atop a crowded leaderboard that saw five players tied for the lead on the back nine.
He added a birdie at the par-five 17th — shooting six-under on the back nine and capping his round with a two-putt par at Riviera’s iconic 18th.
His 17-under 267 left him three strokes clear of Americans Luke List and Will Zalatoris, List carding a 68 and Zalatoris a 69 for 270.
Matsuyama, who was one stroke shy of tying the course record, had started the day tied for seventh but leapt into contention with birdies at the first three holes.
He opened the back nine with another three-birdie burst, drilling a 10-foot putt at the 10th and firing out of the rough to one foot at the par-five 11th before rolling in a 46-footer at the 12th.
At the 15th his eight-iron approach from 189 yards left him eight inches from the pin and the birdie put him among five players sharing the lead at 15-under.
