Youre beginning the year on an island paradise, in a no-cut event wherelastplace pays $200,000.
Pretty, pretty good.
Particularly when youre working through significant changes to your short-game patterns.
Morikawa looked about as rock-solid as rock-solid can be through 63 holes.
(Much, much more on this in just a bit).
And thats putting it kindly.
It all changed, as it so often does, when the finish line began to crystallize.
There was the bladed bunker shot on 14, which led to his first bogey of the week.
That closer mystique has taken a massive hit after the Hero and now this.
“It’s not going to be as great, but it will still be good.
But, yeah, my mind’s already thinking about what we need to do.
Morikawa wouldnt have collapsed like he did if Rahm wasnt consistently pushing up the board after an opening bogey.
“My objective was to get as close to 30-under as possible.
That was what I had in mind.
Collin was, I believe, at 27-under already before he even played nine.
So I just kind of forgot about it for a second.
Then I just started playing 10, made a couple good swings, made the putt.
But I’ve never really thought about how hard it was going to be.
At least in my mind.
In his, well, he’s already been there.
Hes now a combined 60 under par over his last eight rounds there.
Thatll get it done.
Perhaps this golf course owed him one.
“I’m not going to lie.
Why Morikawa should still be extremely excited about 2023
If only he could putt.
If only he could putt, he couldve made it to the PGA Tour.
Certain names come to mind, and those are names that you simply dont include in comparisons.
Thats how frightening a good-putting Collin Morikawa can be.
Its this simple: when he putts well, he wins, or he comes damn close to winning.
This isnt just conjecture.
We have tools to measure this kind of stuff, and the numbers support that hypothesis.
Again: when he putts well, he wins.
The problem is he hasnt putted well nearly enough times.
But the inconsistency continued and the frustration began to build.
So he sought out the guidance of a proper putting guru in Stephen Sweeney late last year.
Its just understanding putting, Morikawa told me.
It sounds stupid, because putting sound so simple.
Its such a short stroke.
Theyre all gonna look good.
I might tell you something, but in reality, its like, why does it do that?
Why does it do this?
Im just trying to learn more.
And thats why putting has become actually fun.
Like, Im excited to putt.
I could just do the same drills again and again, for no reason.
Thats what I was doing.
I was just doing them.
Its pretty shocking to see where Ive gotten in my putting just in the past month.
And Im not betting that its going to happen in a day, or one tournament.
But its really cool to see what its turning in to.
Still, better late than never.
We must note, of course, that one tournament does not a great putter make.
And, as we discussed earlier, its not like Morikawa hasnt had great putting weeks in the past.
But this feels…different.
It feels more sustainable.
The only question is why this come-to-putting-Jesus moment took so long.
This time around, we needed an expert with a process and a plan.
I am very excited to have him on board.
Its all about making Collin a better player now and for the future.
I am seeing that spark in Collins eyes again as he loves to learn and improve.
It is going to be a great year.
His attitude is positive and his smile is back.
Morikawa fell out of the best-player-in-the-world conversation in 2022.
That transformed him from a hugely talented bomber to an all-time great.
“My game hasn’t felt like that in a very long time,” he said Sunday.
Obviously it shows today, but I’m willing to put in that work.
The model: Formula One, where each of the 10 teams are owned by a corporation.
But buying a Formula One (or any American sports franchise) is not merely a business decision.
A sports franchise is a really, really shiny toy.
Maybe the shiniest toy money can buy.
Think Team TaylorMade, or Team Callaway.
Furthermore, the team aspect largely fell flat from a fan-interest perspective over its first year.
At most LIV events it felt more like a sideshow to the individual competition than anything else.
Or maybe theres something more going on here.
The USGA announced that Winged Foot West will host the 2028 U.S. Open.
The thinking: if everyone’s missing fairways, the guy who’s closest has a massive advantage.
We’ll see if they adjust in 2028.
They announced my four wins, Scheffler said, and Billy Foster kind of cracked a joke.
Then Matt gets up, and they announce the 2022 U.S. Open winner an Billy goes, take that!
Theres one you didnt win!
One more Alan Shipnuck plug:Hispiece on the budding bromance/mentorshipbetween Jordan Spieth and Tom Kim was delightful.
Hell have an MRI done this week to properly assess the damage.
I guess being able to shoot 62 isn’t enough for these guys.
They get to find every ball, too.
The rich get richer.
\I’m only kidding…sort of.
He’ll then head back to Oahu for the Sony Open.
This is precisely what the PGA Tour had in mind when creating these designated events.
The Fore Play socials posted his outfit and asked how the people felt about it.
As you might imagine, opinions varied.
If Memphis wants to allow guys to wear shorts in August, they should be able to do so.
If Augusta wants to require pants and ban hoodies, they should be able to do so.
Until next week,
Dan
