Hideki Matsuyama avoids disaster after driver flies out of hands at Sony Open in Hawaii

Hideki Matsuyama was a foot or two from a very unfortunate situation on Thursday.

On the ninth hole at the Sony Open in Hawaii, the former Masters champion hit an iffy tee shot, but it was his driver that ended up being the truly errant projectile. Matsuyama lost grip of the club on his follow through, sending it into the observers’ area.

Fortunately, the driver hit a rope before it reached two women at the front of the crowd.

It was a bad first shot by Matsuyama, but it ended up not mattering. The drive nearly hit the boundary fence to the left, but his second shot landed just short of the green on the 517-yard par 5. One chip and one putt later, Matsuyama had a birdie.

Professional golfers, they’re not just like us.