Hideki Matsuyama's caddy paid respect to Augusta National with beautiful gesture

Hideki Matsuyama made history on Sunday, becoming the first Japanese man to win a major championship. His caddy, Shota Hayafuji, played a major role in that win, and he found a way to pay tribute to the great Augusta National golf course during a long-held caddy tradition.

The moment came after Hayafuji collected the flag from the 18th green, which is a tradition for caddies whenever their golfer wins a tournament. When he was returning the flag pole to the hole, he made a small gesture that communicated a lot of emotion. You can watch it play out in the video below.

After the flag pole was placed back into the hole, Hayafuji took off his hat and gave a small bow to the course. It was a lovely moment, and it's even more meaningful with some additional context: Matsuyama's legendary Masters win was his first with Hayafuji as his caddy.

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