FedExCup Duo Duel
After winning the Waste Management Phoenix Open last Sunday, Hideki Matsuyama refused to buy in to talk about a developing rivalry with Justin Thomas.
The Japanese star understood the media talk given the enormous success the pair have had early in the 2016-17 season and the reality he had once again jumped over the American in the FedExCup race.
Never before in the modern FedExCup era have we seen two players be so dominant so early in a season with Thomas (four weeks) or Hideki Matsuyama (six weeks) spending all but the opening week atop the points race.
Matsuyama already has 1,697 FedExCup points and Thomas has 1,614 through 12 events of the season, combining for 3,311. Since 2009 when the points system changed only Jimmy Walker (1,733 in 2014) has individually had more this far into a season. But never before have the top two at this stage combined to be so far ahead of the pack.
Behind Walker that year was Harris English with 976 meaning they combined for 2,709, a whopping 602 points behind. And no one else has been closer.
Matsuyama now has two wins on the year (he has actually won five of his last nine worldwide starts but just two were official PGA TOUR events) as well as two runner-up finishes.
Thomas has three official wins on the season, two of which came with Matsuyama as runner-up.
So let's look at a comparison and maybe we can have some fun and create a friendly rivalry after all.
The now 23-year-old Thomas grew up as part of a golfing family. His grandfather and father were golf pros. It was only natural he would also come into the sport. He played on the TOUR, and made the cut as a 16-year-old.
Born a little over a year earlier than Thomas, 24-year-old Matsuyama was introduced to the game at a very young age by his father. He won the Asia-Pacific Amateur twice as a teen, sending him to the Masters where he made the cut both times.
The two had extremely successful junior careers and took the college path before turning professional. Both are determined individuals who demand near perfection from their games. Thomas can get surly with himself at times. Matsuyama's follow through often looks like he's hit the shot of a 20-handicapper only for it to end 15 feet from the hole.
But now they sit here quite clearly experiencing the best stretch of golf in their young careers.
Thomas has the extra TOUR win this season and the sensational round of 59 from the Sony Open. But even with his ultra-low round he ranks 3rd in scoring average with 69.029 while Matsuyama sits 2nd on TOUR at 68.89. Matsuyama's lowest round this year is 64.
Thomas makes more birdies ranked 2nd on TOUR with 5.68 a round. Matsuyama is close behind ranked 5th at 5.25. Thomas makes an eagle every 79.2 holes (ranked 10th) while Matsuyama does likewise every 86.4 holes (T17th).
Matsuyama leads the TOUR in Par-5 Scoring at 4.29. He's played all 24 rounds this season at par or better to be ranked first. Thomas leads the TOUR in Par-4 scoring at 3.78 and had 20 rounds at par or better until his second-round last week.
Matsuyama is 5th in the world rankings, leading Thomas who sits at 8th. Matsuyama has earned $4,368,498 to lead the money list with Thomas in 2nd with $3,802,167.
Matsuyama hasn't missed a cut this season. Thomas just failed to make the weekend in Phoenix, his first missed cut of the season.
When it comes to the Strokes Gained stats in 2016-17 Thomas most certainly has the edge. He leads the PGA TOUR in Strokes Gained: Total picking up 2.126 strokes a round on the field. Matsuyama ranks 11th at 1.934.
Breaking them down into their components we see Thomas has the edge over Matsuyama everywhere except Around-the-Green.
SG: Off-the-Tee: Matsuyama 13th (.701) - Thomas 6th (.932)
SG: Approach-the-Green: Matsuyama T41st (.456) - Thomas 5th (1.067)
SG: Around-the-Green: Matsuyama 6th (.766) - Thomas 74th (.127)
SG: Putting: Matsuyama T98 (.011) - Thomas 24th (.698)
SG: Tee-to-Green: Matsuyama 5th (1.923) - Thomas 2nd (2.126)
SG: Total: Matsuyama 11th (1.934) - Thomas 1st (2.824)
The pocket-rocket Thomas averages 309.6 yards driving to rank 14th on TOUR. Matsuyama gives it a good rip also but ranks 23rd at 305.7 yards.
But Matsuyama adds control. His driving accuracy ranks 62nd with a respectable 62.35percent while Thomas is working on hitting more fairways. He's currently ranked 155th at 56.09percent.
Both hit a similar amount of greens in regulation with Thomas ranked 16th at 75.51percent and Matsuyama T21 at 75percent.
Matsuyama's sand save percentage is 71.43percent to rank 7th while Thomas is getting up and down from the traps on just 56.52percent of occasions (ranked 69th). The total scrambling edge stays with Matsuyama as he ranks 16th at 68.52 percent while Thomas sits 27th at 65.98percent.
Thomas is hitting the ball closer on approach as he ranks 10th on TOUR for proximity to the hole with 31'8". Matsuyama is T53 at 34'4".
Both could use some improvement on shots from 50-75 yards although to be fair they don't hit them so often, given their length and long-iron proficiency. Matsuyama ranks 162nd on TOUR with 18'5" from 50-75 yards with Thomas worse at 172nd and 22'4".
When it comes to approach shots greater than 200 yards the pair excel. Thomas is 2nd on TOUR with 36'6" with Matsuyama 12th at 40'5".
All of this is very impressive. But the key for both will be continuing the run. While their dominance ensures they'll both be at the TOUR Championship and in with a shot at the lucrative FedExCup it must be noted that none of the winners since 2009 were up this high this early. Only Brandt Snedeker (9th in 2012) was even in the top 10 through 12 events.
Here's hoping they can keep it up and do create a little personal rivalry – all in good fun of course. They've certainly set the bar high this season and are heading towards the big events as the men to beat. It would certainly be fun to see them head-to-head at the World Golf Championship – Dell Technologies Match Play in Austin.
The pair are going to be around the top echelon of golf for a long time. The major season could bring them even higher accolades. It is infinitely possible the two could also duel it out at East Lake in Atlanta for the FedExCup and then back up soon after on opposing sides in the Presidents Cup in New York.
Now that would be fun to watch.
Source: www.bing.com