A third of money staked and a fifth of bets on the US PGA market have been on the Japanese 25-year-old since yesterday.
Hideki Matsuyama can become the first Japanese golfer to win a major this week and he will arrive at the USA PGA Championship in sensational form. A second World Golf Championship victory at Bridgestone on Sunday means the man who has won six of his last 20 tournaments is now all the rage for glory at Quail Hollow.
Matsuyama finished 5 shots clear of Zach Johnson on -16, after a bogey-free course record equalling round of 61 that included an eagle and seven birdies. It is also the lowest final round recorded in any WGC victory previous.
Since Thursday, Matsuyama has accounted for 13.1% of bets on the US PGA market, Rory McIlroy the next most with 9%. The figures are even more in the 25-year-old’s favour when you look at the data from when he teed off yesterday. He accounts for 19.3% of bets and over third of all money placed on the market (37% of stakes).
At the start of last week, Hideki was priced at 25/1 to win his first major but his impressive play from Thursday to Saturday at Firestone Country Club saw his odds cut to 18/1. His final round then intimidated the bookies once more and he is now as short as 10/1, with just the one bookie holding out at 14/1 for the time being.
He started with eagle and never looked back. #ShotOfTheDay pic.twitter.com/QC92Myn84L
— PGA TOUR (@PGATOUR) August 7, 2017
