Back in November, Luke Donald played and won the Dunlop Phoenix Tournament in Miyazaki, Japan. But in addition to the usual trophy and prize money, he won something very unique and local to Miyazaki! With his victory, Luke won a COW! But not just any cow – Miyazaki has a breed of cattle with the same qualities as the ones found in Kobe (Kobe beef!) and the meat is similarly longed for. Miyazaki beef is on the same level of Kobe, Wagyu, etc. Cows are given names and rumored to drink beer and get massaged with sake, and have a high amount of fat that is prized by those who can afford to eventually eat it.
But Luke didn’t get his cow until nearly six months after winning the tournament! The USDA actually banned the importing of Japanese beef most recently in 2011. Restaurants pay about $160 a pound for the beef, but diners, who obviously eat in in smaller pieces, typically pay at least double that. But after six months of communication with the cow breeders in Japan, an agreement was finally made. Instead of the entire cow being imported from Japan, Luke and his cow acquisition team needed to specify the cuts they wanted and how many pounds of each they were requesting.
Once the agreement was reached, Luke would receive about 200 pounds of Miyazaki beef! And yesterday was the day Luke took delivery that contained about $80,000 worth of beef at retail! He was quoted saying that “it’s very marbled and the knife just eases through the meat – definitely the best beef I’ve ever had.” And just looking at the photos above, the beef looks as if it would just melt in your mouth!
Source: ESPN Golf
