NASSAU, Bahamas (AP) — Hideki Matsuyama ended his season the way he started it, winning the Hero World Challenge on Sunday when he closed with an 8-under 64 and then hit 9-iron to 2 feet for birdie on the first playoff hole to defeat Alex Noren.
Matsuyama, who began the year by setting a PGA Tour record to par by winning at Kapalua, holed out from 116 yards in the 10th fairway for eagle that allowed him to catch Sepp Straka, move past Scottie Scheffler and seize control at Albany Golf Club.
Noren, unable to start his year until May because of a hamstring injury, charged along the back nine and caught Matsuyama with an 18-foot birdie putt on the final hole for a 64 to join him at 22-under 266 and force a playoff.
The overtime didn't last long. Matsuyama, known for taking one hand off the club even when the shots work out fine, this time twirled the 9-iron in his hand as he watched it take aim at the flag and plop down a few feet away. Noren's 20-foot birdie attempt slid by on the left.
“It was a perfect distance for me,” Matsuyama said. “Early on the second shot (in regulation), I missed a little to the right. I was going right at it and was able to hit a great shot.”
He won the holiday event hosted by Tiger Woods for the second time, winning in 2016.
Straka, the 54-hole leader by one shot over Scheffler, birdied the final hole for a 68 to finish alone in third. Scheffler had a slow start and a two-hole stretch early on the back nine that ruined his bid for a third straight victory at Albany Golf Club. He shot 68 and tied for fourth with U.S. Open champion J.J. Spaun (65).
Matsuyama went out in 31 and suddenly was tied with Straka when he holed out for eagle.
But the tournament took shape behind him on the par-5 11th.
Scheffler, two shots out of the lead, chose to hit driver off the fairway from 291 yards away with a speck of mud on the front of his ball. It went left under a small bush. He hacked that out to a sandy area, then hit his fourth shot over the green to back portion of a bunker. Only a superb bunker shot allowed him to escape with bogey.
But then he found a bunker on the par-3 12th that led to bogey, and was five shots behind Matsuyama when the Japanese star holed a 30-foot birdie putt on the 13th hole.
Scheffler ended his season by not finishing worse than a tie for eighth in his last 16 events dating to the Houston Open the last week in March.
“It’s nice to come down here, kind of gauge where I’m at,” Scheffler said. “I definitely felt like some of the stuff I’ve been working on the last few weeks, I saw some progress here, and the stuff I was focused on in the offseason, definitely saw some progress here as well. Good place to be.”
Matsuyama now has 21 wins worldwide, and he wore his tradition yellow shirt for the final round when he started three shots off the lead. He failed to capitalize on both par 5s on the back nine, but his bogey-free round and a brilliant 9-iron in the playoff was enough for his third time received a trophy from Woods. He also won the Genesis Invitational at Riviera in 2024, hosted by Woods.
“Tiger told me to shoot 10 under today,” Matsuyama said. “I didn't shoot 10 under, but I'm very happy to win this week.”
AP golf: https://apnews.com/hub/golf
Copyright 2025 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without permission.
Please purchase a Premium Subscription to continue reading.
To continue, please log in, or sign up for a new account.
We offer one free story view per month. If you register for an account, you will get two additional story views. After those three total views, we ask that you support us with a subscription.
A subscription to our digital content is so much more than just access to our valuable content. It means you’re helping to support a local community institution that has, from its very start, supported the betterment of our society. Thank you very much!
Only subscribers can view and post comments on articles.
Already a subscriber? Login Here
“A dazzling delight for all ages” Read moreRodger's & Hammerstein's Cinderella
Join us for Bay Area Youth Ballet's magical holiday tradition as The Nutcracker comes to lif… Read moreThe Nutcracker Presented By Bay Area Youth Ballet
Interact with live nativity characters; pet various animals; sing along with Christmas carol… Read moreChristmas Under the Stars
aurosharman said:
aurosharman said:
Success! An email has been sent to with a link to confirm list signup.
Error! There was an error processing your request.
Sorry, an error occurred.
Already Subscribed!
Cancel anytime
Thank you .
Your account has been registered, and you are now logged in.
Check your email for details.
Submitting this form below will send a message to your email with a link to change your password.
An email message containing instructions on how to reset your password has been sent to the email address listed on your account.
No promotional rates found.
Secure & Encrypted
Thank you.
Your gift purchase was successful! Your purchase was successful, and you are now logged in.
| Rate: | |
| Begins: | |
| Transaction ID: |
A receipt was sent to your email.
(0) comments
Welcome to the discussion.
Log In
Keep the discussion civilized. Absolutely NO personal attacks or insults directed toward writers, nor others who make comments.
Keep it clean. Please avoid obscene, vulgar, lewd, racist or sexually-oriented language.
Don't threaten. Threats of harming another person will not be tolerated.
Be truthful. Don't knowingly lie about anyone or anything.
Be proactive. Use the 'Report' link on each comment to let us know of abusive posts.
PLEASE TURN OFF YOUR CAPS LOCK.
Anyone violating these rules will be issued a warning. After the warning, comment privileges can be revoked.