Hideki Matsuyama, Tom Kim fight into contention at U.S. Open

No Asian golfer has won the U.S. Open since its inception in 1895 but this weekend, Japan’s Hideki Matsuyama and Tom Kim of Korea will get a crack to set the record straight at Pinehurst No. 2

Matsuyama, Asia’s winningest golfer on the PGA TOUR with nine victories, already has a taste of major glory following a historic triumph at the 2021 Masters Tournament which made him the first Japanese male major champion. A bogey-free, 4-under 66 in the second round on Friday, which was the day’s low score, put him right in the title mix for major No. 2 where his 2-under 138 total sees him in solo eighth and three behind 36-hole leader Ludvig Åberg.

A further stroke back is the effervescent Tom Kim, who battled to a gutsy 68 for a 139 total. While this week is his seventh straight tournament in a row, the 21-year-old is bouncing at the opportunity to become the second Korean male major winner after Y.E. Yang (2009 PGA Championship). Kim, who has already won three times on the PGA TOUR, was described by countryman K.H. Lee during the 2022 Presidents Cup “like the Energizer bunny, just keeps going.”

The task to rewrite a new page in Asian golf history will no doubt be difficult. Pinehurst No. 2 has been a brutal and penal test all week, and those currently featured on the leaderboard while trying to chase down the year’s third major include elite names in the game.

Matsuyama, who is featuring in his 12th straight appearance at the U.S. Open, was joint runner-up at Erin Hills in 2017 where he finished four shots behind winner Brooks Koepka. It matched the best finish by another legendary Japanese golfer, Isao Aoki, who came in solo second and two back of Jack Nicklaus at Baltusrol in 1980. It was probably in 1985 at Oakland Hills that Asia came closest to celebrating a rare win. T.C. Chen of Chinese Taipei led by four strokes in the final round but finished an agonizing tied second and one stroke behind winner, Andy North after he ran up a quadruple-bogey on the fifth hole, which featured a chip-shot that he hit twice in one swing. It earned him the moniker “Two Chips” Chen.

Interestingly, Matsuyama credited his own short game for his rise up the leaderboard at Pinehurst No. 2, thanks to four birdies on hole Nos. 3, 4, 5 and 11, after starting his round from the 10th tee. "I feel it's a great test for all the players. I felt like I was playing really well today," said Matsuyama, who won The Genesis Invitational in February. "It's very difficult, obviously. I really had difficulty on this golf course, but I managed to save par a few times. Hopefully, I can keep that momentum through the weekend. My short game was on point, and that really helped my overall performance. I still need to make some adjustments to my iron game, and hopefully, I can do that throughout the week."

Matsuyama's brilliance with his iron play was evident where he notched a hat-trick of birdies from the third hole. He gained nearly 6.5 strokes over the field on Friday for his Approach (1.48), Around the Green (1.73) and Putting (3.23) play. "The third and fourth, it was great shot and great putt. Had a really good momentum. On the fifth, I hit the tee shot left. I was able to recover from there. It was about a 10-footer birdie putt. It was really good flow."

Kim hopes to keep his foot on the pedal in his chase for major glory, although he may running on fumes from being on the road for nearly two months. The ultra-talented Korean enjoyed a season’s first top-10 at the RBC Canadian Open (T4) a few weeks ago, and intends to improve on his 23rd place finish in his U.S. Open debut in 2022 and tied for eighth last season. He has proven on so many occasion now that he can thrive when the going gets tough, as evident by his tied second finish at The Open Championship last July where he played on despite an ankle injury after tearing ligaments from a fall.

"I'm really pleased to have shot under par,” said Kim after his round. “This course really brings out the best in you, both mentally and skill-wise. I did a really good job staying grounded all day and fought well.”

He brilliantly birdied hole Nos. 4, 5 and 7 on his inward nine to ensure a late tee time on Saturday. “Yeah, it was really big. I hit a really good tee shot on 4. Somehow just got in that bunker. Hit a really, really good 5-iron to three and a half, four feet. Kind of got the momentum on the back nine. Made another smelly 7-, 8-footer for birdie there. Just kind of kept the momentum going. Really nice to hit that nice little 8-iron on 7, for another 3-footer, which kind of takes the stress off."

"I think I just enjoy it (the U.S. Open). It's a tough test," he added. "I think what I really appreciate about it is got to be mentally tough. As good as you need to be skill set-wise, it's all mentally and physically you just got to be there all the time."

With conditions expected to be a grind over the weekend, Kim is prepared to take his medicine and remain patient on a course which will penalize errant shots or decision. “You might hit good shots and not get rewarded as much. You just got to be in it. I feel like that's what the mindset was. I feel like we've done a really good job. The next two days, that's how we're going to go about it,” he said.