Japan's Matsuyama hits brilliant 65 with stand-in caddie at FedEx St. Jude Championship

Japanese star Hideki Matsuyama shrugged off the forced absence of his regular caddie and coach to fire a 5-under 65 for tied second place after the first round of the FedEx St. Jude Championship on Thursday.

Matsuyama, a nine-time PGA Tour winner and bronze medalist at the recent Paris Olympics, rode a hot putter at TPC Southwind in Memphis as he nailed seven birdies against two bogeys to trail leader Chris Kirk by one.

Korea’s Sungjae Im and Byeong Hun An returned matching 69s in the first of three FedExCup Playoffs events, while Si Woo Kim and Tom Kim carded a 70 and 71, respectively.

The 32-year-old Matsuyama is using stand-in bagman Taiga Tabuchi after his longtime caddie Shota Hayato and coach Mikihito Kuromiya were forced to return to Japan to sort out their travel documents after losing their passports during a stopover in London last week following the Olympics. Tabuchi is the caddie for Ryo Hisatsune, who did not qualify for the Playoffs.

“Kind of reminded me of the first time Shota was on my bag. We worked through a couple things. Really that was the main thing today is having teamwork with my caddie. Playing well, and I don't know how Shota is going to take it, but we'll work that out,” said Matsuyama, who ended the day tied with Taylor Pendrith of Canada and Frenchman Matthieu Pavon.

A return to TPC Southwind gives Matsuyama good vibes as he finished tied second in the 2021 World Golf Championships-FedEx St. Jude Invitational, losing in a playoff. He rattled home several long birdie putts from 24 feet, 34 feet and 17 feet on Hole Nos. 7, 12 and 14, and ranked first in Strokes Gained: Putting in the first round where he gained 2.6 strokes over the 70-man field. Matsuyama is ranked 133rd in the category for the season.

“I'm happy the way I played today,” said Matsuyama, who is currently eighth on the FedExCup points list. “My job is the same. It's just play golf. I talk to my coach every night on the phone. I've got a great caddie. Taiga did a great job today, so we'll just see how it goes. I'm playing well, and that momentum has carried over. Now it's just whether or not the results, the score can go with it.”

Matsuyama said he and his team realized their personal belongings were stolen after finishing up dinner in London. “It was an unfortunate situation. Luckily, I only lost my wallet but Shota and coach lost their passports, and we're trying hard now to get their visas back in time. We didn't even know it happened. We were just having a friendly dinner, and Shota was the first one, hey, where is my bag. Of course it was frustrating, but we really didn't know it happened. It was just kind of all of a sudden.”

Hayato, who has been on Matsuyama’s bag for most of his victories including the historic Masters Tournament triumph in 2021, is expected to be back in time for the Tour Championship, which Matsuyama missed out last year after making nine successive appearances in the FedExCup Playoffs finale.

“We're pushing hard, looking toward East Lake. Shota will make it, I think, but my coach probably won't,” said Matsuyama, who has one win and four other top-10s this season.

After his fine start in Memphis with a fill-in caddie, will Hayato still have his job?

Matsuyama smiled and replied: “Of course. Of course.”