Chris Gotterup surged late with a seven-under 64, then beat Hideki Matsuyama in a play-off to win the 2026 WM Phoenix Open. His second victory in three starts this season.
Hideki Matsuyama, who began the year with a torrid display of scoring at the Sentry tournament in January, completed the bookend to his season in style today with a playoff victory over Alex Noren at the Hero World Challenge in Nassau, Bahamas.
With the Presidents Cup being played at Royal Montreal in Canada starting from Thursday, all eyes will be on the current Asian crop of stars if one of them, including Maruyama’s compatriot Hideki Matsuyama, can emulate a similar feat to power a much-desired International team victory.
No Asian golfer has won the FedExCup since its inception in 2007, with Sungjae Im of Korea coming the closest in 2022 after finishing tied second behind McIlroy.
Burns got hotter than Marble Bar in January when he pulled his tee shot badly on the par-4 ninth hole during the third round of the FedEx St Jude Championship at TPC Southwind.
Matsuyama was returning to the US from Paris, where he won the Olympic golf bronze medal, and he was travelling with his caddie, Shota Hayato and coach Mikihito Kuromiya. They had a one-night layover in London and went to a restaurant downtown where the robbery occurred.
Australian Golf Digest
