Hideki Matsuyama usually draws praise for his world-class ball-striking skills, but on this day, all eyes were on the newest addition to his wardrobe.

“You look really good in the green jacket,” a reporter told Matsuyama, 29, at an online news conference livestreamed from Tokyo on April 14.

The comment immediately drew a big smile from Matsuyama, who replied, “Thank you!”

Matsuyama cut a dashing figure in the green jacket, given to the Masters winner, upon his return to Japan. 

He became the first Japanese male golfer to win a professional major tournament with his one-shot victory at Augusta National on April 11.

Asked if he was wearing the jacket throughout the flight back to Japan, Matsuyama said, “Well, I couldn’t continue wearing it as you would expect, but I held it on my arm all the time.”

And he has no plans to hang it in a trophy room or even a closet. 

“I want to carry it around with me all the time. It is better to carry it than leave it somewhere and lose it,” Matsuyama said.

Since returning on April 13, Matsuyama said, “I haven’t met anybody yet since I came back to Japan, so I feel somewhat funny.”

Even the new Masters champion has to self-quarantine after entering Japan to prevent the spread of the novel coronavirus.

But that hasn't stopped him from watching the ample news coverage of his triumph, which thrilled his nation and brought congratulations from golf fans from around the world.

“Every time I see the news, I realize I have accomplished an amazing thing,” he said.

The year has not always been so kind to him, though, with no top-10 finishes on the PGA Tour since November 2020.

“Technically, I felt that my golf was getting better bit by bit since the beginning of this year," he said. "But it rarely led to a better outcome. I spent my days in frustration.”

A breakthrough came the day before the Masters started.

“On that Wednesday after the practice session, I felt inside of me, ‘I think I could win this week,’” he said.

“I don’t know what it was really, but the fact that I had such feeling was a big factor (in winning the Masters), I think,” he said.

The final day of the tournament, in which he started with a four-shot lead, was especially tough, he said.

“I was nervous from the first hole to the last. I did not feel that I had room to breathe, not even a hole, until the very last shot.”

At the par-5 15th hole, Matsuyama hit his second shot over the green, which bounded down a hill and into a pond.

“It was the moment I lost the lead I had maintained until then in that one shot,” he said looking back, as his comfortable four-shot lead was cut to two shots with three holes to play. “It was really tough, but I kept my spirit alive and well.”

Matsuyama was not the only Japanese who garnered attention and respect from around the world after the historic win.

Amid the cheers and applause from fans in Augusta, Matsuyama’s caddie, Shota Hayafuji, 27, removed his cap and bowed respectfully to the course after returning the flagstick to the cup on the 18th green.

The scene was soon posted on social media, and sports media such as ESPN and the Golf Channel picked it up and spread the video with praise.

“I saw the video at around 11 p.m. that night,” Matsuyama said. “Then I was like, ‘Oh, he did that kind of thing?’ I think he showed good behavior, and I wished we did it together.”

Matsuyama has stated his goals would be to win a gold medal at the Tokyo Olympics and a major tournament at around the same time.

Now with one of the objectives accomplished, Matsuyama is setting his sights on the Games this summer and representing Japan. 

If the Olympics proceeds as scheduled, he said, “I want to work hard with a goal of winning a gold medal.”

Golf fans in Japan are already hoping Matsuyama will complete the Grand Slam of golf by winning the four major tournaments in one calendar year. He already has accomplished the first rung with the Masters, with the PGA Championship up next in May. 

“I, too, think about that in no small part,” Matsuyama said. “But I am really exhausted after (the Masters). I still feel emotions that I have never felt before.

"So I am not there yet to set my next goal. I want to bask in the afterglow of the (victory) for a little while longer. When the time comes, I will lay out my goal and give it my best shot.”