The man with the green jacket is looking for more than just his first top-10 at Waialae Country Club.
Defending Masters champion Hideki Matsuyama shot the best round of the day at Waialae Country Club on Saturday, riding a hot putter to a 7-under 63 to get within two shots of the lead heading into today’s final round of the Sony Open in Hawaii.
Matsuyama will be paired in the final group with Russell Henley, who is the overnight leader for the second day in a row. Henley cooled off after opening with rounds of 62 and 63, but still managed to make five birdies to shoot 67 and remain in front at 18 under.
The most recognizable name in the field once Bryson DeChambeau withdrew with a wrist injury lurks right behind however.
Matsuyama had not had a ton of success here coming in. A tie for 12th is his best finish in eight career appearances, matching the most in any tournament he’s played without a top-10.
The biggest reason? Putting, which he has turned around big-time this week.
Matsuyama needed just 25 to get through his third round on Saturday, and he’s gained more than six strokes putting through three rounds.
He had lost strokes putting in each of his last six appearances.
“I was lucky today,” Matsuyama said through an interpreter after the round. “Probably putting was strong point today. Even my missed putts found the hole.”
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Matsuyama’s bogey-free round began with birdies on Nos. 2, 4 and 7 to get to the turn at 12 under.
The putter really came alive in the middle of his back nine when he drilled a 37-footer on the par-4 13th to get to 14 under.
He finished off an up-and-down from the bunker on 14 by rolling in a testy 13-footer for par and then hit his drive to the right side of the fairway on 15 that left a tree in the way of his second shot to the flag.
Matsuyama hit an 8-iron right over the branches to get to 13 feet, where he again made a nice putt to shave another stroke from his score.
He closed the round with another putt from the same distance for birdie to post the best 54-hole score of his career at 194.
“I was worried about the tree and I had an 8-iron in my hand and (caddie) Shota (Hayafuji) said, ‘Hey, it’ll clear the tree, no worries,’ and so I just trusted him and hit the shot,” Matsuyama said.
Matsuyama had the biggest gallery of the day following him around the course.
“Whenever there is big crowd like this, it just gives you some extra motivation,” he said. “Just kind of rode with all their cheers and hopefully (today) will be another good day.”
Henley, who at one point late Saturday afternoon had fallen into a tie with Matsuyama, can expect to see that same large gathering on Sunday.
The 2013 Sony Open champion needed a nail-biter from 6 feet for bogey on 13 to avoid falling out of the lead for the first time after hitting his drive into the left rough.
Birdies on Nos. 15 and 17 allowed him to distance himself from Matsuyama, and he closed with par on 18 after driving into the right rough, where he then mishit his second shot and caught a fortunate break to get it into the fairway.
“I was trying to lay it up more like a wedge distance so I could attack the pin (and) I just misjudged my lie in the rough tremendously,” Henley said. “That was not planned. I was trying to just stay aggressive.
“I figured it wouldn’t be quite as easy as the first two days. It’s just not how golf works typically.”
Henley said he had difficulty sleeping Friday night despite being in this position before.
He’s held the 36-hole lead six times in his career but only won once.
“I’m already not the best sleeper,” Henley said. “I’ve slept on a few leads the last couple years. It’s tough. But yeah, I mean, the thing is you look at what Hideki did today, he shot 7 under. Guys are so good out here. You just have to play at such a high level for so long to be in contention.”
The top of the leaderboard has a worldwide feel, with Japan, Scotland (Russell Knox), Canada (Adam Svensson) and China (Haotong Li) all represented in the top six.
Knox, Svensson, Li and Matt Kuchar are in a four-way tie for third at 14 under.
Lucas Glover, the 2009 U.S. Open champion, and Kevin Kisner, who has three top-five finishes at the Sony since 2016, are tied for seventh place at 13 under.
