SHANGHAI (AP) -- No one from Japan has more than Hideki Matsuyama's three PGA Tour victories. No one from Japan ever won a World Golf Championship.
None of this might have been possible if Matsuyama had never left home so quickly.
Even after he blew away a world-class field in the HSBC Champions to reach No. 6 in the world, the 24-year-old Matsuyama was not comfortable being mentioned with the five players ahead of him in the ranking or other Japanese players before his time.
That starts with Jumbo Ozaki, who won more than 100 tournaments and was inducted into the World Golf Hall of Fame five years ago.