“Win some, you lose some” - Brian Harman reflects and laughs at his misjudgment of a young Hideki Matsuyama
Brian Harman recently reminisced on quite a funny incident, where he badly misjudged a young Hideki Matsuyama. While golfers might be the best judges of winds, distances and greens, when it came to Matsuyama, Harman made quite a misjudgment.
Brian Harman made his debut at the 2012 Sony Open, a year before Matsuyama turned pro. However, Matsuyama was in the field as an amateur golfer at the time, and this was his first Sony Open. Harman was playing with Matt Every at that time, and Matsuyama had entered the field on a sponsor's exemption.
A young Hideki Matsuyama was understandably nervous. During the practice rounds, Harman recalls having the following conversation with Every (according to Golf Digest):
"There is always a couple sponsor exemptions, so we're playing with this kid, and Matt and I, he's very nervous and there is photographers all over the place. He dribbled a couple off the tee boxes and Matt and I made the comment, don't think this kid's got it. Don't think this guy is gonna make it: Hideki Matsuyama.
"Yeah, so Matt and I would joke about that. Yeah, we missed on that one. I don't think I've ever talked to Hideki about it. Matt and I talk about it all the time. Win some, you lose some."
Matsuyama, however, went on to prove Brian Harman quite wrong. Not only did he win eight tournaments on the PGA Tour, he also became the first Japanese golfer to win a Major when he earned the Green Jacket at the 2021 Masters.
Brian Harman reminisces on funny incident after Hideki Matsuyama proved him wrong
Brian Harman has held on to the conversation that he had with Every and now looks back at it as a funny incident where he was proved wrong.
Matsuyama turned pro in 2013 and joined the Japan Golf Tour. In 2014, he played on the PGA Tour through non-member earnings and also took his very first win in the same year at the Memorial Tournament. The Japanese would go on to win tournaments such as the WM Phoenix Open, the Hero World Challenge and the Sony Open.
Hideki Matsuyama's crowning moment came in 2021, when he won the Masters Tournament, his first Major win.