On February 12, 2026, at Pebble Beach, Hisatsune delivered a bogey-free 62, the best round of his PGA Tour career. He made ten birdies and holed 158 feet of putts, leading the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am after the first round. He entered the $20 million event through the Aon Swing 5 and finished the day ahead of Sam Burns and Keegan Bradley by one shot.
The PGA Tour posted the clip on X: “There’s a method to his madness 😈.” Then Hisatsune explained the method himself.
“Sake bomb,” he said. Pause. “Just kidding. It’s just water.”
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Hisatsune started this habit early in his professional career, after turning pro in December 2020. He found that drinking water before putts helped him manage nerves and focus under pressure. It became a routine that allowed him to stay calm and consistent.
The sequence is exact. Hisatsune gets behind the ball to read the line — that’s Spencer’s cue. The light blue bottle comes forward, straw out, no words exchanged. Hisatsune sips, returns it, steps in, and puts. Miss the putt? Spencer is already bringing the bottle back. It also covers short-game shots up to 70 yards. The bottle runs on water and Gatorade electrolyte packets, and is refilled somewhere between four and five times per round.
Getting the timing right has taken some caddies longer than others. Hisatsune told a publication covering his caddie partnership: “He has good timing. Some caddies have not; some have forgotten. But he’s doing very well.”
At Pebble Beach on Thursday, the routine produced a Strokes Gained: Putting of 5.132 seconds in the entire field.
Ryo Hisatsune’s “Birdie Juice” moment triggers fan frenzy on social media
But the sake bomb joke did something a birdie reel alone rarely does: it gave strangers a personality to attach to the scorecard.
“Birdie Juice!” One commenter immediately gave the bottle its new name. There was no need for a campaign or hashtags. Hisatsune had already earned it: 158 feet of putts made, a bogey-free 62, and a straight-faced joke that turned the water bottle into the supposed reason for his performance.
“Gonna try this one out. It probably won’t work,” came from someone who understood the gap between watching Hisatsune drain putts from everywhere at Pebble Beach and replicating the routine on a Saturday morning.
“We’d be boys” summed up in three words what others might have taken longer to say. “Japanese humour is literally the best” was a reaction to the sake bomb comment. Hisatsune made the remark, corrected himself, and kept the same expression he used on the course. The humor worked because he was not trying to get a reaction.
“And just like that, I’m now a fan 😂” showed how quickly Hisatsune won people over, even without a tournament win. He qualified for this Signature Event through the Aon Swing 5, not because of a big name or major victory. His personality made an impact that rankings could not.
“Joking but not joking 😉😂” closed the thread in six words that captured what the entire exchange was — a genuine window into how Hisatsune actually operates, wrapped in a joke that turned out not to be one.
Hisatsune heads into Round 2 at Spyglass Hill one shot clear. The water bottle travels with him.
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