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WGC Mexico: The Top 10 Players in the Field You’ve Never Heard of

By Eric Sedransk

MEXICO CITY, MEXICO - MARCH 04: General view of the pond on green 17th during the final round of World Golf Championships-Mexico Championship at Club De Golf Chapultepec on March 4, 2018 in Mexico City, Mexico. (Photo by Gregory Shamus/Getty Images)
MEXICO CITY, MEXICO - MARCH 04: General view of the pond on green 17th during the final round of World Golf Championships-Mexico Championship at Club De Golf Chapultepec on March 4, 2018 in Mexico City, Mexico. (Photo by Gregory Shamus/Getty Images) /
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Shugo Imahira WGC Mexico
HONOLULU, HI – JANUARY 12: Shugo Imahira of Japan plays his shot from the first tee during the third round of the Sony Open In Hawaii at Waialae Country Club on January 12, 2019 in Honolulu, Hawaii. (Photo by Kevin C. Cox/Getty Images) /

Shugo Imahira is a name that some golf fans may have heard of as he was recently given a Special Invitation to the 2019 Masters.

This should not be taken lightly as The Masters rarely gives out these types of special invitations given their propensity for keeping the field small (normally limited to around 80 participants).

This is just the second time since 2013 that the Augusta National Committee has handed out a special invitation. The other one was handed out last year to Shubhankar Sharma of India.

It’s pretty apparent that the committee has international viewership numbers on it’s mind with these invitations, but let’s be clear, Imahira has some serious game.

He was the leading money winner on the Japan Tour in 2018, where he was victorious at the Bridgestone Open as well as finished 2nd three times, 3rd three times plus 7 other top-10 finishes. The 26 year old has proven to be quite consistent on the Japan Tour.

At just 5’5″ and weighing 132 pounds Imahira is by far and away the smallest competitor at this weeks event. Given his modest stature it’s no surprise that Imahira isn’t the longest player on tour. Statistics from the Japan Tour show his driving distance around 275 yards.

While it’s highly unlikely that Imahira will be able to compete with the bombers this week, don’t be surprised if we hear Shugo’s name more and more in the coming years as the next great player to come out of Japan.

He’s currently listed at 250/1 odds of winning this week.

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