Hideki Matsuyama confident he will be fully fit to defend Masters title

Japanese player admits last few weeks 'have been a struggle' but is now 'pain free' ahead of Augusta major

Hideki Matsuyama has been struggling with back and neck problems but believes he will be fighting fit for the Masters. Getty

Defending champion Hideki Matsuyama is confident he will be fully fit to defend his Masters title at Augusta this week.

Matsuyama pulled out of the Players Championship shortly before the start of the first round with a back injury and then withdrew midway through his second round of the Valero Texas Open last week with a neck problem.

The world No 12 said he suffered the injury on the way to a tie for 20th at the Arnold Palmer Invitational in early March.

“Last couple of weeks have been a struggle,” Matsuyama, who became the first Japanese man to win a major golf title and the first Asian-born golfer to don the green jacket last year, said.

“I had a lot of treatment last week, though, at Valero Texas Open. Monday and Tuesday, I was pain free, feeling really good. Then woke up Wednesday morning, and the neck was stiff again.

“But I've had, again, a lot of treatment the last couple of days. I just came from the practice range and really felt good. It's probably the best I felt in a long time.

“So I'm looking forward to Thursday, and hopefully I'll be 100 per cent by then.”

Matsuyama had enjoyed a successful start to the 2021-22 season, winning the Zozo Championship late last year before a dramatic play-off victory at the Sony Open in Hawaii in January.

While his first major title brought a host of perks, such as meeting the prime minister of Japan, Matsuyama said the biggest lingering thrill was simply being announced on the first tee of every tournament as the reigning Masters champion.

“That was a highlight that I was able to relive almost every week that I played,” he said. “Last week in Texas, it was a little sad because I knew that was going to be the last time that I was going to be announced as the defending Masters champion.

“It kind of made me feel, hey, I need to go out and win it again so I can continue that highlight.”

Meanwhile, four-time major winner Rory McIlroy believes missing the cut in his final event before the Masters could work in his favour.

McIlroy opted to skip the WGC-Dell Technologies Match Play to compete in Texas last week instead, but made an early exit following rounds of 72 and 73.

“It was beneficial in the end,” McIlroy, who needs a win at Augusta to complete a clean-sweep of major titles, said.

“You always learn more disappointments or times when you don’t play so well, so it wasn’t a bad cut to miss. I did two really good days of work at home and felt a lot better about where things were heading up here on Sunday evening.”