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      Mouthwatering British sporting summer calendar revealed as ‘Fury vs Joshua on July 24’ added to Euro 2020 and Wimbledon

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      A remarkable British sporting calendar is taking shape in what promises to be a summer to remember.After the coronavirus pandemic put sport on its knees 12 months ago, events such as the European Championships and Wimbledon were postponed and cancelled as fans were left with little entertainment.
      This summer promises to be a sensational festival of sport
      England will be hoping to win a first major tournament in 55 years this summerCredit: Getty
      Now, one year on from that we are set for one of the best ever summers of jam-packed British sport as spectators return to whip up a frenzy.
      It all kicks off on June 11 with the postponed Euro 2020 which is being played for the first time ever across 12 different European countries.
      But the semi-finals and final of the tournament – which ends on July 11 – are scheduled to take place at Wembley Stadium, the first major international final at the ground for 25 years.
      While the Euros are going on, there is also the small matter of Wimbledon returning for the first time in two years on June 28.
      Incidentally, the final at the All England Club will be played on the same day as the conclusion of the Euros.
      From June through to September a festival of cricket will also be taking place with England taking on Pakistan and Sri Lanka in a number of one-day internationals, before a five Test series with India.
      And to top it all off, the inaugural edition of The Hundred gets underway in July.
      In athletics there is the Diamond League Anniversary Games at the London Stadium, an event which takes place just five days before another huge day in Formula 1 with the British Grand Prix.
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      Hamilton will look to secure a record-extending eighth British Grand Prix victory this summerCredit: AFP
      Ben Stokes will be hoping he can drive England to victory over India in their five Test seriesCredit: Getty Images – Getty
      Wimbledon will make a triumphant return after being cancelled last year for the first time since WWIICredit: Reuters
      The day before the British GP there is also the small matter of the Rugby League Challenge Cup final at Wembley on July 17.
      And then perhaps the biggest one of them all could be confirmed in the coming days as Anthony Joshua and Tyson Fury prepare for an undisputed heavyweight clash on July 24.
      The fight looks set to take place in the Middle East, but a 100,000 capacity crowd at Wembley Stadium has not yet been ruled out.
      Throw in a bit of golf action with The Open and Women’s British Open and you have yourself a blockbuster few months of UK sport.
      With events such as the London Marathon and Rugby League World Cup then rounding off 2021, it promises to be unquestionably one of the greatest ever years of British sport.
      You’d be a fool to miss it.
      The Anniversary Games at the London Stadium promises to be another special eventCredit: PA
      Hearn hits back at Tyson Fury’s dad John over lack of support for Anthony Joshua fight More

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      Ready or Not, Hideki Matsuyama Is Now a National Hero in Japan

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      By winning the Masters, the publicity-shy golfer will face a news media spotlight that trails every move of Japanese athletes abroad.TOKYO — Hideki Matsuyama has never been a fan of the spotlight. Even as he rose to become Japan’s most successful male golfer, he did his best to avoid the attention lavished on the every move of other Japanese athletes who have shined on the global stage.But with his win on Sunday at the Masters in Augusta, Ga., the glare will now be inescapable. His victory, the first by a Japanese man in one of golf’s major championships, is the fulfillment of a long-held ambition for the country, and it guarantees that he will be feted as a national hero, with the adoration and scrutiny that follows.Japan is a nation of avid golfers, and the game’s status as the sport of choice for the Western business and political elite has given it a special resonance. Success in sports has long been a critical gauge of the country’s global standing, with the United States and Europe often the standard by which Japan measures itself.“We have always dreamed of winning the Masters,” said Andy Yamanaka, secretary-general of the Japan Golf Association. “It’s a very moving moment for all of us. I think a lot of people cried when he finished.”Those tears reflect, in part, an island nation that sees itself as smaller and less powerful than other major countries, even though it is the world’s third-largest economy. That means athletes who represent it globally are often burdened with expectations and pressures that transcend the field of play.The country’s news media has followed the exploits of its athletes abroad with an intensity that some have found unnerving. When the baseball star Ichiro Suzuki joined the Seattle Mariners, Japanese news organizations set up bureaus in the city devoted exclusively to covering him. Television stations here broadcast seemingly obscure major league games just in case a Japanese player appears. Even modest scoring performances by a Japanese N.B.A. player can trigger headlines.Golf is no exception. Even during low-stakes tournaments, a gaggle of Japanese reporters often trail Matsuyama, 29, a degree of attention that the media-shy golfer seems to have found overwhelming.At Augusta, the pressure — at least from the news media — was blessedly low. Covid-19 restrictions had kept attendance by journalists to a minimum, and Japan’s press turned out in small numbers. After finishing Saturday’s third round with a four-stroke lead, Matsuyama admitted to reporters that “with fewer media, it’s been a lot less stressful for me.” The pressure is on for Matsuyama to win a gold medal in golf for Japan at the Tokyo Olympics.Doug Mills/The New York TimesHis victory was a major breakthrough for a country that has the world’s second-largest number of golf players and courses. The game is a ubiquitous presence throughout the nation, with the tall green nets of driving ranges marking the skyline of virtually every suburb. In 2019, the P.G.A. added its first official tournament in Japan.In the century since the game was introduced to Japan by foreign merchants, the country has produced a number of top-flight players, like Masashi Ozaki and Isao Aoki. But until now, only two had won major tournaments, both women: Hisako Higuchi at the 1977 L.P.G.A. Championship and Hinako Shibuno at the 2019 Women’s British Open.Earlier this month, another Japanese woman, Tsubasa Kajitani, won the second ever amateur women’s competition at Augusta National.Matsuyama’s Masters victory was the crowning achievement of a journey that began at the age of 4 in his hometown, Matsuyama — no relation — on Japan’s southern island of Shikoku. His father, an amateur golfer who now runs a practice range, introduced him to the game.He excelled at the sport as a teenager, and by 2011, he was the highest-placed amateur at the Masters. By 2017, he had won six PGA events and was ranked No. 2 in the world, the highest ever for a Japanese male golfer.In recent years, however, he seemed to have hit a slump, haunted by an uneven short game and a tendency to buckle under pressure, squandering commanding leads on the back nine’s putting greens.Through it all, Matsuyama has led a private existence focused on golf, while other athletes have racked up media appearances and corporate endorsements. He has earned praise for a work ethic that has sometimes led him to cap off a major tournament appearance with hours of work on his swing.He seems to have no hobbies or any interest in acquiring them. In 2017, he surprised the news media when he announced that his wife had given birth to the couple’s first child. Few even knew that he was married. No one had ever asked, he explained. When Donald J. Trump — a devotee of the game who was fond of conducting presidential business on the links — visited Japan in 2017, the prime minister at the time, Shinzo Abe, recruited Matsuyama for some golf diplomacy. The threesome did not keep score, and Matsuyama — true to his nature — had little to say about the experience.With his victory at Augusta, the expectations on Matsuyama will increase dramatically. Media attention is likely to reach a fever pitch in the coming weeks, and endorsement offers will flood in.Although golf has dipped in popularity in Japan in recent years, sports analysts are already speculating that Matsuyama’s win could help fuel a resurgence in the game, which has had renewed interest as a pandemic-friendly sport that makes it easy to maintain a healthy social distance. The Tokyo Olympics this summer will also focus attention on the game.Matsuyama chatted with Dustin Johnson, left, the 2020 Masters champion, after receiving his green jacket for the victory.Doug Mills/The New York TimesMunehiko Harada, president of Osaka University of Sport and Health Sciences and an expert on sports marketing, said he hoped that Matsuyama would use his victory to engage in more golf diplomacy, and that it would ameliorate the anti-Asian rhetoric and violence that have flared during the pandemic.“It would be great if the victory of Mr. Matsuyama would ease negative feelings toward Asians in the United States and create a kind of a momentum to respect each other,” he said, adding that he hoped President Biden would invite the golfer to the White House before a scheduled meeting with the Japanese prime minister, Yoshihide Suga, this week.In remarks to the news media, Suga praised Matsuyama’s performance, saying it “gave courage to and deeply moved people throughout Japan.”The pressure is already on for Matsuyama to notch another victory for the nation.“I don’t know his next goal, maybe win another major or achieve a grand slam, but for the Japan Golf Association, getting a gold medal at the Olympics would be wonderful news,” Yamanaka, the association’s secretary-general, said.News reports have speculated that Matsuyama will be drafted to light the Olympic caldron at the Games’ opening ceremony in July.Asked about the possibility at a news conference following his victory, Matsuyama demurred. Before he could commit to anything, he said, he would have to check his schedule.Hisako Ueno contributed reporting. More

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      Incredible British sporting summer calendar revealed with potential Fury vs Joshua on July 24 added to Euros & Wimbledon

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      A remarkable calendar of British sport is taking shape in what promises to be a summer to remember.After the coronavirus pandemic put sport on its knees 12 months ago, events such as the European Championships and Wimbledon were postponed and cancelled as fans were left with little entertainment.
      This summer promises to be a sensational festival of sport
      England will be hoping to win a first major tournament in 55 years this summerCredit: Getty
      Now, one year on from that we are set for one of the best ever summers of jam-packed British sport as spectators return to whip up a frenzy.
      It all kicks off on June 11 with the postponed Euro 2020 which is being played for the first time ever across 12 different European countries.
      But the semi-finals and final of the tournament – which ends on July 11 – are scheduled to take place at Wembley Stadium, the first major international final at the ground for 25 years.
      While the Euros are going on, there is also the small matter of Wimbledon returning for the first time in two years on June 28.
      Incidentally, the final at the All England Club will be played on the same day as the conclusion of the Euros.
      From June through to September a festival of cricket will also be taking place with England taking on Pakistan and Sri Lanka in a number of one-day internationals, before a five Test series with India.
      And to top it all off, the inaugural edition of The Hundred gets underway in July.
      In athletics there is the Diamond League Anniversary Games at the London Stadium, an event which takes place just five days before another huge day in Formula 1 with the British Grand Prix.
      FREE BETS: GET OVER £2,000 IN SIGN UP OFFERS HERE

      Hamilton will look to secure a record-extending eighth British Grand Prix victory this summerCredit: AFP
      Ben Stokes will be hoping he can drive England to victory over India in their five Test seriesCredit: Getty Images – Getty
      Wimbledon will make a triumphant return after being cancelled last year for the first time since WWIICredit: Reuters
      The day before the British GP there is also the small matter of the Rugby League Challenge Cup final at Wembley on July 17.
      And then perhaps the biggest one of them all could be confirmed in the coming days as Anthony Joshua and Tyson Fury prepare for an undisputed heavyweight clash on July 24.
      The fight looks set to take place in the Middle East, but a 100,000 capacity crowd at Wembley Stadium has not yet been ruled out.
      Throw in a bit of golf action with The Open and Women’s British Open and you have yourself a blockbuster few months of UK sport.
      With events such as the London Marathon and Rugby League World Cup then rounding off 2021, it promises to be unquestionably one of the greatest ever years of British sport.
      You’d be a fool to miss it.
      The Anniversary Games at the London Stadium promises to be another special eventCredit: PA
      Hearn hits back at Tyson Fury’s dad John over lack of support for Anthony Joshua fight More

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      Hideki Matsuyama is Golf's Quiet Superstar

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      Shy, intense and obsessive about his golf game, Hideki Matsuyama has been quietly working toward his elite place in the sport for the past several years.AUGUSTA, Ga. — Hideki Matsuyama stood on the 18th green at Augusta National Golf Club on Sunday evening, a winner of the Masters Tournament. There had been no skyward leap, no cathartic, celebratory climb into his caddie’s arms.Just a hat tip and some hugs — an understated, in-the-moment recognition of a seminal achievement for Matsuyama, the first Asian-born golfer to claim a green jacket, and for golf in Japan.“When the final putt went in, I wasn’t really thinking of anything,” he said, adding that he was happy for his caddie, Shota Hayafuji, because it was his first win.“And then, it started sinking in,” Matsuyama said, “the joy of being a Masters champion.”It was characteristic Matsuyama, the man who used a rain delay on Saturday to play games on his cellphone in his car, the golfer who for years has been unsettling opponents while seeming set on avoiding the spotlight.“He doesn’t talk a whole lot, and he’s really solid,” Justin Thomas said after his round but before Matsuyama’s triumph.“I think he’s quite an intense character, actually, even though we don’t really see that,” said Adam Scott, the 2013 Masters winner who has known Matsuyama for years. “I mean, and obsessive about his game.”“He played like a winner needs to play,” said Xander Schauffele, who was paired with him for the final round on Sunday. “He was like a robot.”Just under six feet and weighing close to 200 pounds, Matsuyama had been lionized in Japan, where he began to learn golf from his father, long before he rose to No. 2 in the world, even before his victory at Augusta National, which earned him $2,070,000. He played in the Masters for the first time in 2011, when he tied for 27th and was crowned the low amateur. He shot a 68 in the third round then, a trip through the course that he said was significant to building the fortitude he would need outside the amateur ranks.“It gave me the confidence that I could play here,” he said. “I could play professional golf as a career.”He joined the PGA Tour in 2013 and won a few tournaments before a breakout 2017, when he topped the leaderboard at three events and placed second at the United States Open.It was that year when his penchant for privacy became clear: He announced that he had married months earlier and that he and his wife had had a child.“No one really asked me if I was married, or, you know, so I didn’t have to answer that question,” he said at a tournament news conference then. “But I felt that after the P.G.A. would be a good time, because our baby is born and I thought that would be a good time to let everyone know.”The shyness remains. Asked over the weekend how he felt about the coronavirus pandemic having kept more journalists away from the grounds at Augusta National, he replied: “I’m glad the media are here covering it, but it’s not my favorite thing to do, to stand and answer questions. And so with fewer media, it’s been a lot less stressful for me, and I’ve enjoyed this week.”But in the years before a full ascent into golf’s elite, particularly in Japan, Matsuyama was a promising young player in search of guidance, Scott remembered.“I found back then he was really interested to learn everything he could,” Scott recalled of his interactions with a younger Matsuyama during the 2013 Presidents Cup, the first of four in which Matsuyama would compete.“Just someone who’s got a desire to do well is what it looked like,” Scott said later. “He wasn’t afraid to ask the questions, and I think that shows. As timid as some people can be, the desire to do well overshadows the language barrier or being shy or anything like that.”Until Sunday, however, he had been in something of a slump, even though he was leading the Players Championship in 2020 when the rest of the tournament was canceled as the coronavirus gained a greater foothold in the United States.This year, Matsuyama said, he had a coach with him from Japan who was helping him to improve his game.“He’s been a great help, a great benefit,” Matsuyama said on Saturday. “Things that I was feeling in my swing, I could talk to him about that.” He added: “He always gives me good feedback. He has a good eye. It’s like having a mirror for my swing, and it’s been a great help for me. We worked hard, and hopefully now it’s all starting to come together.”On Sunday evening in Augusta, it did. More

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      in Golf

      Hideki Matsuyama of Japan Is the First Asian-Born Winner of the Masters

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      Matsuyama led the final round from start to finish at Augusta National, becoming the first Asian-born man to win the Masters.AUGUSTA, Ga. — Hideki Matsuyama’s first swing in the final round of the 85th Masters was an unsightly banana-shaped slice that would have looked familiar on the nerve-racking first tee of any golf course in the world.Matsuyama, who entered Sunday’s fourth round with a four-shot lead, had not slept much Saturday night, and the walk Sunday afternoon from the practice range to the golf course was more disquieting.“When I got to the first tee it hit me,” Matsuyama said. “I was really nervous.”But Matsuyama hunted down his wayward opening drive in the left woods and decisively chose an intrepid course, smashing his ball from a bed of wispy pine straw through a slender gap between two trees. Matsuyama’s caddie, Shota Hayafuji, yelped, “Woo,” which elicited a toothy grin from the typically undemonstrative Matsuyama.Matsuyama chipped a shot on the 18th hole from the bunker.Doug Mills/The New York TimesEven though he bogeyed the first hole, the tone for his day was set.A former teenage golf prodigy in Japan who has long been expected to break through on golf’s biggest stage, Matsuyama, 29, fearlessly charged the daunting Augusta National Golf Club layout on Sunday to build a commanding lead. Even with three unsteady bogeys in the closing holes, he persevered with a gutsy final-round 73 to win the 2021 Masters by one stroke and become the tournament’s first Asian-born champion.Matsuyama, who finished 10 under par for the tournament, is also the first Japanese man to win a major golf championship. Will Zalatoris finished second, and Xander Schauffele and Jordan Spieth tied for third place at seven under par.Matsuyama’s groundbreaking victory will make him a national hero in golf-crazy Japan, which has had a rich history of producing world-class male golfers who have come close to winning a major championship over the past several decades but have fallen short. Two Japanese women have won major golf championships. Matsuyama’s breakthrough comes at a time of unrest over racially targeted violence against Asian and Asian-Americans.Matsuyama started off the day 11 under par and remained in front the entire day.Doug Mills/The New York TimesThe new face of Japanese golf is shy and tight-lipped, so much so that when he was married and had a child in 2017 he kept it hidden from the golf world for seven months. Sunday, after receiving his ceremonial green jacket beside the 18th green, Matsuyama stood motionless, his arms at his sides as news photographers took his picture. Urged to look celebratory, he raised both arms overhead and meekly smiled. Emboldened by the winsome reaction it elicited, Matsuyama widened his grin and jabbed his fists in the air twice.Led to a news conference, Matsuyama was asked if he was now the greatest golfer in Japanese history.“I cannot say that I am the greatest,” he answered through an interpreter. “However, I’m the first to win a major, and if that’s the bar, then I set it.”Will Zalatoris, a Masters rookie, finished second in his tournament debut.Doug Mills/The New York TimesMatsuyama was more interested in answering what effect his victory might have on young Japanese golfers.“Up until now, we haven’t had a major champion in Japan, maybe a lot of young golfers thought it was an impossibility,” he said. “Hopefully this will set an example that it is possible and if they set their mind to it, they can do it, too.”Matsuyama, who had the low score for an amateur at the 2011 Masters, was ranked as high as second in the world four years ago, but suddenly fell into a slump. Until Sunday, he had not won a tournament since 2017 and his ranking had slipped to 25th worldwide.But after a sparkling 65 in the third round Saturday — he had an eagle and four birdies in his final eight holes — Matsuyama came into the final round with a heathy cushion atop the leaderboard. He was steady at the start on Sunday, even after the opening-hole bogey. He rebounded with a birdie at the second, then reeled off five pars and cruised into the back nine with a comfortable five-stroke lead.But as often happens on a Masters Sunday, odd, unforeseen things ensued.At the par-5 15th hole, Matsuyama sized up a second shot in the fairway that was 227 yards from the flagstick. He said he “flushed” a 4-iron but his golf ball rocketed off the green and scooted into the water behind the hole. It was no small misstep, not with his playing partner Schauffele about to birdie his fourth consecutive hole. Matsuyama did not lose his poise or persistence. Taking a penalty stroke, he prudently chipped to the fringe of the green and two-putted for a bogey.Schauffele was trailing by only two strokes when the duo stepped on the 16th tee. Still chasing the leader, Schauffele said he felt he had to go for another birdie, but his aggressive tee shot was short of the green and trickled into a pond.Schauffele said the notoriously swirling Augusta National winds double-crossed him, a familiar rejoinder, and likely an accurate one.“I hit a good shot; it turned out bad,” Schauffele, who made a triple bogey on the hole, said. “I’ll sleep OK tonight — I might be tossing around a little.”The turn of events made the Masters rookie Zalatoris the closest pursuer to Matsuyama, especially after Zalatoris made a lengthy, downhill par putt on the 18th hole to finish the final round at nine under par, just two strokes behind Matsuyama.With two holes left to play, Matsuyama hit a brilliant drive in the middle of the 17th fairway, launched a perfect wedge shot to the middle of the green and two-putted for par. At the 18th hole, he hit another perfect drive but his approach shot faded and landed in the greenside bunker to the right of the green. His recovery from the sand stopped six feet from the hole, but two putts still gave him the championship.The second place finish by Zalatoris, who is in his first year on the PGA Tour, will raise his profile in the golf community considerably, especially in combination with his result at the 2020 United States Open where he tied for sixth. Leaving the 18th hole Sunday, Zalatoris, 24, received a standing ovation from the fans ringing the green.“Absolute dream,” Zalatoris said. “I’ve been dreaming about it for 20 years.” He added: “I think the fact that I’m frustrated I finished second in my third major says something. Obviously, my two majors as a pro, I finished sixth and runner-up. I know if I keep doing what I doing, I’m going to have a really good chance in the future.”Matsuyama also received a hearty, long ovation as he left the 18th green on Sunday. When he sank his final putt and the victory was assured, Matsuyama, unlike most golfers in that situation, had no visible reaction.“I really wasn’t thinking anything,” Matsuyama acknowledged. “Then it started to sink in, the joy of being a Masters champion. I can’t imagine what it’s going to be like, but what a thrill and honor it will be for me to take the green jacket back to Japan.” More

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      in Golf

      High Finishes at the Masters Are Becoming Familiar to First-Year Players

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      Will Zalatoris, who finished second at the Masters, one stroke behind the winner, is only the latest first-year player to contend for a green jacket.AUGUSTA, Ga. — As an undergraduate at Wake Forest, Will Zalatoris received an invitation familiar to members of the golf team: Come play at Augusta National Golf Club. When he did in 2017, he recalled recently, he stood on the bridge straddling Rae’s Creek and gazed around Amen Corner.He has now crossed the bridge at No. 12 again and again, and at his father’s urging, he has looked back each time. But on Sunday, in the final round of his inaugural appearance at the Masters, the walk was as a 24-year-old contender for the winner’s green jacket — and as the latest embodiment of how one of golf’s grandest spectacles has become more favorable to its first-time entrants.Zalatoris faltered by the narrowest of margins on Sunday as Hideki Matsuyama putted into history for a one-stroke victory to become the first Asian-born player to win the Masters. But Zalatoris became the first Masters rookie since 1982 to stand alone in second place, a slot most frequently filled across the generations by more experienced players, including those bearing surnames like Nicklaus and Mickelson and Woods.What was once a rarity at a tournament that began in 1934 is often feeling like the norm. Until 2011, a player in his Masters debut had placed second in the tournament, alone or in a tie, just five times. Since then, it has happened five more times, including in the 2020 and 2021 tournaments.Zalatoris started the day with consecutive birdies to try to gain on the eventual champion, Hideki Matsuyama.Doug Mills/The New York TimesThe 42-year legend of Fuzzy Zoeller, the last player to win the tournament on his first attempt, will linger among Augusta National’s hills and pines for at least another year. But a wrinkle for the sport and its future is that golf’s newest names are consistently proving hugely formidable at the most venerated of American tournaments, one where experience is deeply prized and jitters can attack even those players with plenty of it.His age notwithstanding, Zalatoris has been preparing for years: He told his parents on Saturday that he had a memory from over the years of every hole at Augusta National, from misery-inducing No. 5 to the hole in one factory, relatively speaking, that No. 16 can be. His craving to play well at Augusta National — his sense that he could play well at Augusta National — could be at least partly traced to Tiger Woods, the five-time winner who was absent this year.“He’s our trendsetter for the game,” Zalatoris said. “I think that’s part of the reason why so many kids come out early, is we saw him be fearless at a young age and we come out and play fearless. And then on top of that, we were interested in watching the tournament year in, year out.”There could be other reasons, too, for the surge in fortunes among players in their debut. In 2017, Phil Mickelson proffered that Augusta National’s greens, which were particularly vicious this tournament, had become more amenable for first-time players, perhaps easing their path toward the top of the leaderboard.Zalatoris acknowledged the crowd as he left the course.Doug Mills/The New York Times“The course has been lengthened, and the greens aren’t the only defense,” Mickelson, who first won a Masters title on his 12th try, said then. “What that allows you to do is miss it in a spot that normally would be bad but get away with it because the greens are more receptive. I think that that allows players who have not played here many times, who maybe put it in the wrong spots, but are able to recover because the greens will receive shots that they didn’t use to receive.”Still, an admirable finish in a player’s first year does not promise imminent success at Augusta.Sungjae Im, for instance, missed the cut this year after being one of the runners-up in 2020. Jason Day, the second-place finisher in 2011, still has not won the tournament, just like most of the first-timers who finished second at the Masters. Adam Scott, who earned a ninth-place tie in his first outing in 2002, did not crack the top 10 again until 2011.“The first year I played here I knew nothing really, and I finished ninth,” Scott, who won the Masters in 2013, said last week. “And then I just started finding out where all the trouble was the years after that. It took me a while, and I really didn’t play good tee to green until about 2010, which was nine years in, and kind of got my confidence back over the next couple years.”Then again, Jordan Spieth, who finished three strokes behind Matsuyama for a tie for third in this year’s tournament, won on his second try. He marveled over Zalatoris.Jordan Spieth started shaky but ended up in a tie for third in the tournament. Doug Mills/The New York Times“Having seen him progress and his confidence level just continue to progress over the last year and a half, I’m not surprised,” Spieth said Sunday. “It is very difficult this weekend to come out in the position he was in in the final group on Saturday and to — it’s just a different feeling. Then in this wind, to control his high ball flight and to make putts on these greens when you don’t see other greens like this, especially in windy conditions, I thought it’s extremely impressive.”At sunset on Sunday, Zalatoris was mulling his 279 shots over the tournament, contemplating which ones he could have done better — “that’s just golf every single week” — but was nonetheless relishing a small spot in history. He earned a standing ovation as he approached the green at No. 18 after a day of glancing at every leaderboard he could.“I just took as many mental images in my mind because I’ve watched this tournament for as long as I can remember,” he said, “and the fact that I was a part of it is pretty special, and the fact that I contended is even cooler.”There is, after all, next year.“I know if I keep doing what I’m doing,” he said, “I’m going to have a really good chance in the future.”By then, though, there could be another first-year player climbing the leaderboard. More

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      What Channel Is the Masters On? How to Watch and Stream It

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      Coverage of the Masters Tournament is split across a number of television networks, streaming platforms and websites, making it confusing to understand how to watch. The good news is that there are a number of viewing options, some of them free, for golf fans.Here is how you can catch Sunday’s final round.The main actionThe traditional television coverage of the tournament’s final round, which will culminate with somebody donning a green jacket, can be seen on CBS from 2 to 7 p.m. Eastern time. That coverage will be simulcast in the CBS Sports app and on the Paramount+ streaming service.All-day coverageGroups begin teeing off in the morning, however, and you can start watching the Masters with your coffee. On the Masters livestream there are four different “channels” to watch:Featured groupsAmen CornerHoles 15 and 16Holes 4, 5 and 6These options all begin and end at different times, depending on when the first golfers reach the different holes, but the featured groups channel kicks things off at 10:25 a.m. Eastern. The featured groups are Paul Casey and Billy Horschel (10:30 a.m.), Bryson DeChambeau and Harris English (11 a.m.), Justin Spieth and Brian Harman (2:10 p.m.) and Justin Rose and Marc Leishman (2:30 p.m.).You can watch the Masters livestream in a number of different places. ESPN+, Paramount+, the CBS Sports app, CBSSports.com and Masters.com all carry it.Other stuffIf you are more interested in analysis from talking heads and footage of golfers practicing before their tee times, the Golf Channel is live from the Masters both before and after the main coverage on CBS. If you miss the final round, encore coverage begins almost immediately, at 8 p.m. Eastern on the CBS Sports Network. More

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      Hideki Matsuyama Charges Into the Lead at the Masters

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      After a 78 minute rain delay the golf course was far more forgiving with significantly slower greens, and Matsuyama will head into Sunday’s final round 11-under par.AUGUSTA, Ga. — The third round of the Masters tournament began Saturday with a gusting wind that bedeviled the field and seemed to make the firm, already crusty Augusta National Golf Club greens more parched, speedy and vexing.Then, just before 4 p.m., a rainstorm with the potential for thunder and lightning sent the golfers scurrying to the safety of the clubhouse. After a 78 minute suspension of play, players returned to a golf course that was far more forgiving with dampened, significantly slower greens. The wind had all but disappeared.Sensing the reprieve, many in the field attacked.Leading the charge was Hideki Matsuyama of Japan, who shot a sparkling 65 by playing his final eight holes in six under par. At 11 under par for the tournament, Matsuyama, 29, will take an authoritative four-shot lead into Sunday’s final round. Four golfers are tied for second: second-round leader Justin Rose, Xander Schauffele, Marc Leishman and Masters rookie Will Zalatoris.If Matsuyama, the 2017 P.G.A. Tour rookie of the year and a runner-up to Tiger Woods at the 2019 Masters, can retain his lead on Sunday, he will become the first Asian to win the Masters. He is the first Japanese player to hold the lead at the end of any Masters round.Hideki Matsuyama watched his chip shot on the 18th green.Doug Mills/The New York TimesMatsuyama said he felt relaxed during the weather delay because the last shot he hit before the suspension of play — a drive off the 11th tee — was his worst swing of the round.“I thought I can’t hit anything worse than that,” he said through an interpreter. “Maybe it relieved some of the pressure. I did hit it well after the delay.”That is an understatement. Matsuyama, who is ranked 25th in the world, put on a superlative display of ball striking that may someday make up much of the highlight reel of the 2021 Masters.Matsuyama began Saturday with six successive pars and caught Rose with a birdie on the seventh hole. Then he poured it on, beginning with his approach to the elusive 11th green that resulted in a converted 12-foot birdie putt. Matsuyama’s tee shot to the tricky par-3 12th settled only eight feet from the hole for another birdie. After three successive pars, Matsuyama eagled the par-5 15th hole when his second shot — a towering, precise 5-iron — landed four feet from the flagstick. His birdie putt on the par-3 16th was even closer, which Matsuyama banged home confidently. The 17th hole was more of the same after two exceedingly accurate shots from the tee and the fairway.Hideki Matsuyama, left, and Xander Schauffele both made eagles on the 15th hole.Doug Mills/The New York TimesThe most nervous moment Matsuyama had on the back nine was when he flew his second shot 20 yards over the 18th green, but a nifty bump-and-run pitch left a tap-in par putt.After the rainstorm, Matsuyama conceded he, “hit practically every shot exactly like I wanted to do.”If Matsuyama wins on Sunday, it would be the second victory for a Japanese golfer on the grounds in the last eight days. On Apr. 3, 17-year-old Tsubasa Kajitani, who is from Okayama, Japan, won this year’s Augusta National Women’s Amateur tournament.“It was fantastic,” Matsuyama said of Kajitani’s victory. “I hope I can follow in her shoes and make Japan proud.”Matsuyama had seven P.G.A. Tour and European Tour victories from 2014 to 2017. He said there were a variety of reasons he has been winless for the last few years, but noted that this year he began traveling with a Japanese coach, Hidenori Mezawa, which he called a “great benefit.”“Things that I was feeling in my swing, I could talk to him about that, and he gives me good feedback,” Matsuyama said. “It’s like having a mirror for my swing. Hopefully now it’s all starting to come together.”A weather warning went out and play was suspended as severe thunderstorms approached.Doug Mills/The New York TimesJordan Spieth waited to putt on the 18th green as inclement weather passed over Augusta National Golf Club.Doug Mills/The New York TimesBefore the weather delay, most of the second-round leaders played inconsistently or downright struggled. Rose, who began Saturday with a one-stroke lead at seven under par, opened with consecutive birdies on the first two holes but then had successive bogeys on the fourth and fifth holes. Rose rallied to shoot even par the rest of the way. Brian Harman, who trailed Rose by one stroke to begin his round, slumped to a 74 that left him at four under par for the tournament.The most roller coaster outing was turned in by Jordan Spieth, who in the second round had moved to within two strokes of Rose. On the seventh hole on Saturday, Spieth sent his approach shot over the green then flubbed a chip shot and hit an overly aggressive bunker shot that led to a double bogey. He was in even worse trouble on the next hole when his tee shot was so far left it appeared he was almost replaying the seventh. Buried in the woods, Spieth lofted an iron shot over a tall stand of pine trees that landed three feet from the eighth hole for an easy birdie. A chip-in birdie on the 10th hole followed, as did an eagle at the 15th, but those successes were offset by the earlier setbacks, and Spieth concluded with a round of 72, trailing Matsuyama by six shots.Zalatoris seemed the most at ease as the third round began with a string of pars and a nifty birdie on the par-4 third hole. But Zalatoris, 24, did not appear to adjust well to the slower green speeds after the rainstorm, and missed several birdie putt attempts on the back nine to shoot 71.Justin Rose and Will Zalatoris are two of four golfers tied for second place headed into Sunday.Doug Mills/The New York TimesCorey Conners, with a hole in one on the sixth hole, made the biggest early move up the leaderboard on Saturday to finish at six-under-par, just behind the gaggle tied for second.Schauffele, who was grouped with Matsuyama, shot an impressive 68 and still had time to exchange repartee in Japanese with his playing partner. Schauffele’s maternal grandparents lived in Japan and he said he has picked up some of the language.Or as Matsuyama said of his conversation with Schauffele: “We didn’t get a chance to talk a lot, but when we did, we exchanged some good Japanese jokes and had a good laugh.”Matsuyama and Schauffele are paired together again for Sunday’s final round, and are scheduled to tee off at 2:40 p.m. Eastern time. More