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MASTERS TOURNAMENT

April 10, 2011

Hideki Matsuyama

AUGUSTA, GEORGIA

ED HERLIHY: Like to welcome Hideki Matsuyama, our Asian Amateur Champion who has played in his fourth round of the Masters and finished for the tournament 1-under par.
Congratulations and we are very happy for you.
HIDEKI MATSUYAMA: Thank you.

Q. Top 16 and ties earn you a return trip next year. Was that something that you had set a goal for, you were aware of that, set a goal for coming in today?
HIDEKI MATSUYAMA: I know that was the case. Well, I had that in mind before I started to tee off on the first, but as soon as I started playing, that was not in my mind.

Q. You had talked about being able to put your focus on golf and not what's going on back in Sendai. How do you feel now that you don't have golf to focus on and you're going back home; what is that going to be like for you?
HIDEKI MATSUYAMA: Well, I'm going back to Sendai, and I will be volunteering over there. I think that it will be kind of a refreshing experience for me just away from golf and just to do something different.

Q. What will you be volunteering doing, or what will you do?
HIDEKI MATSUYAMA: Well, I don't know exactly what I'm going to do at this point but I know that my coach will tell all of the teams what kind of things that we can do together.

Q. When does school start again? I know it's been delayed, the new school year; and will you be in Sendai waiting for school to start? And where will you stay? You talked about your dorm room being ruined in the tsunami and earthquake. Where will you stay and live?

HIDEKI MATSUYAMA: Well, I don't think that they really set the starting date, but when I go back to Sendai, I will be staying at the dorm which is half-destroyed. It's damaged, I should say.

Q. Looking a little further into the future, do you expect to graduate from college or are you contemplating turning pro possibly before that? And will you be back at Singapore next fall to defend your championship at the Asian Amateur?
HIDEKI MATSUYAMA: I will finish my college, and I am planning on just going to Singapore. And I would love to win the tournament and I would like to come back here next year.

Q. Talk about how important it was to finish with a birdie on that last hole, and talk us through that hole.
HIDEKI MATSUYAMA: Well, I shot with a driver and the second, a 9-iron, and I was able to have a good second shot. It was not too long of a putt, so I was able to finish it off.

Q. Curious, why do you think now, on reflection, why did you do so well in this tournament? Why were you able to make the cut and compete and finish under par, and is there one moment that stands out above all others that you will remember always leaving Augusta?
HIDEKI MATSUYAMA: There are so many great impressions, great memories from this tournament. But as I just came up the hill on the 18th hole and I heard the applause from the gallery, that just give me chills and I was so happy to hear that. And also, that I was able to finish up with a birdie. That's a great memory that I can take home.

Q. In college golf in Japan, is there a season-ending championship similar to the NCAAs in the United States, and if so, when is that, and is your university -- do you expect it to be a contender for the championship?
HIDEKI MATSUYAMA: I think that we have the championship in August, and I believe that's when it is in Japan.

Q. Are you feeling strong enough to be a contender?
HIDEKI MATSUYAMA: As a team, we won three out of five competitions. I don't know whether I will be in that team, but I think that I will do our best and we'll see what good things we can do together.
ED HERLIHY: Thank you very much and wish you luck in continuing your career.

FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports

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