Hideki Matsuyama chased Russell Henley down on the back nine, before eventually beating him on the first playoff hole to win the 2022 Sony Open in Honolulu. With the win Matsuyama earned his 8th career PGA Tour victory, tying him with KJ Choi for the most in tour history by an Asian born player.
Carding a 23 under par total for the weekend, Matsuyama and Henley needed an extra hole to break Sunday’s tie. It was there that the 29 year old native of Ehime, Japan stuck his 276yd approach shot 3 feet from the pin to tap in for Eagle and the win.
Matsuyama shot a 7 under 63 on Sunday, giving him 13 consecutive rounds in the 60’s dating back to last October. Henley appeared to be in cruise control at the turn, leading by 5 strokes, but failed to card another birdie the rest of the way. Henley had a chance to win it outright on 18 but saw his birdie putt lip out to send the tournament to extras.
“A little bit sloppy on the back nine but made the par saves I needed to make to put pressure on Hideki. He just played incredible golf today,” Henley said. “I wish I could have put some more pressure on him. Tough to beat 3-wood to 2 feet on 18.”
Kevin Kisner and Seamus Power finished tied for 3rd at -19, but never truly put any pressure on Matsuyama or Henley down the stretch. The 2021 Masters champion had more than his fair share of supporters cheering him on at the Waialae Country Club in Hawaii. And they would not be disappointed Sunday as they watched their countryman become the 2nd Japanese born golfer to win the Sony Open.
It was 39 years prior that Isao Aoki became Japan’s first PGA Tour winner at the Sony Open. With the win, Matsuyama earns 500 FedEx Cup points and overtakes Talor Gooch for the number one spot in the standings. He also takes home $1.35M for his efforts this past weekend.
Up next for the Tour is the American Express PGA West championship at the Stadium Course in La Quinta, California.