VOA慢速英语--日本选手松山英树获美国高尔夫球大师赛冠军

Golfer Hideki Matsuyama became the first Japanese champion of a men's major tournament Sunday at the Masters in Augusta, Georgia.

The event is the first of the four professional major tournaments, every year. The others are the U.S. Open, the British Open and the PGA Championship.

Over four days of play, Matsuyama finished one stroke¹ better than Will Zalatoris, a Californian playing in the tournament for the first time.

"It was really wonderful," Prime² Minister Yoshihide Suga said of the Masters win. Japan is preparing to open the Tokyo Olympics in July, after COVID-19 forced a year-long postponement³ of the 2020 Summer Games. Matsuyama's success, Suga said, "moved our hearts and gave us courage."

Japanese golfers have seen some international success. Two, Chako Higuchi and Hinako Shibuno, won championships of women's majors in 1977 and 2019.

The closest a Japanese player came to a men's major win was Isao Aoki in 1980. He finished second to Jack⁴ Nicklaus at the U.S. Open that year.

The Masters is the only one of the four men's majors where there has been a winner from all continents where golf is played.

Aoki spoke⁵ about Sunday's finish in comments published by Golf Digest online. He noted⁶ another Matsuyama victory that lifted the spirits of the Japanese people during a difficult time. In 2011, Matsuyama won non-professional play at the Masters tournament, earning the Silver Cup award. His performance came just weeks after the earthquake and resulting tsunami⁷ and nuclear power factory disaster in the Fukushima area of Japan. About 18,000 people were killed.

Aoki said Matsuyama "gave hope to so many people," when they were feeling bad.

Nicklaus said Matsuyama will always be a hero in Japan, adding, "this is a great day for him, for Japan, and for the global game of golf!"

The U.S. Embassy⁸ in Japan offered congratulations to Matsuyama.

Outside a busy transport station in Tokyo, one man called the victory "tremendous⁹." He said Matsuyama had set a great goal for Japan's next generation.

Words in This Story

tournament –n. a sports competition or series of contests that involves many players or teams and that usually continues for at least several days

stroke –n. an act of hitting a ball or the movement made to hit a ball during a game

courage –n. the ability to do something that you know is difficult or dangerous

tsunami –n. a very high, large wave in the ocean that is usually caused by an earthquake under the sea and that can cause great destruction¹⁰ when it reaches land

global –adj. worldwide

tremendous –adj. very good or excellent

1 stroke   

n.笔画，击打，连续的动作，中风，心跳；vt.奉承，轻抚； vi.击打，心跳...

参考例句：

• He drove in a nail with one stroke of the hammer.他一锤就把钉子敲进去了。
• He broke the lock with one stroke of the hammer.他一锤就把锁砸坏了。

2 prime   

adj.首要的，主要的；最好的，第一流的

参考例句：

• The prime minister spoke of the general insecurity in the country.总理谈到了全国普遍存在的不安全。
• He met with the Prime Minister of Japan for an hour.他和日本首相会见了一个小时。

3 postponement   

n.推迟

参考例句：

• He compounded with his creditors for a postponement of payment. 他与债权人达成协议延期付款。
• Rain caused the postponement of several race-meetings. 几次赛马大会因雨延期。

4 jack   

n.插座，千斤顶，男人；v.抬起，提醒，扛举；n.（Jake）杰克

参考例句：

• I am looking for the headphone jack.我正在找寻头戴式耳机插孔。
• He lifted the car with a jack to change the flat tyre.他用千斤顶把车顶起来换下瘪轮胎。

5 spoke   

n.（车轮的）辐条；轮辐；破坏某人的计划；阻挠某人的行动 v.讲，谈（speak的过去式）；说；演说；从某种观点来说

参考例句：

• They sourced the spoke nuts from our company.他们的轮辐螺帽是从我们公司获得的。
• The spokes of a wheel are the bars that connect the outer ring to the centre.辐条是轮子上连接外圈与中心的条棒。

6 noted   

adj.著名的，知名的

参考例句：

• The local hotel is noted for its good table.当地的那家酒店以餐食精美而著称。
• Jim is noted for arriving late for work.吉姆上班迟到出了名。

7 tsunami   

n.海啸

参考例句：

• Powerful quake sparks tsunami warning in Japan.大地震触发了日本的海啸预警。
• Coastlines all around the Indian Ocean inundated by a huge tsunami.大海啸把印度洋沿岸地区都淹没了。

8 embassy   

n.大使馆，大使及其随员

参考例句：

• Large crowd demonstrated outside the British Embassy.很多群众在英国大使馆外面示威。
• He's a U.S. diplomat assigned to the embassy in London.他是美国驻伦敦大使馆的一名外交官。

9 tremendous   

adj.巨大的，极大的；很好的，非常好的

参考例句：

• This book was the outcome of a tremendous amount of scientific work.这本书是大量科学研究工作的成果。
• There is a tremendous difference between them.他们之间有着极大的差别。

10 destruction   

n.破坏，毁灭，消灭

参考例句：

• The enemy bombs caused widespread destruction.敌人的炸弹造成大面积的破坏。
• Overconfidence was his destruction.自负是他垮台的原因。