HILTON HEAD ISLAND, SOUTH CAROLINA | Having finished his nine-hole pro-am round Wednesday morning at Harbour Town Golf Links, Collin Morikawa quickly scaled a set of stairs on a players-only bridge near the clubhouse, never breaking stride as he climbed up and then down on his way to a post-round appointment.
A week ago, Morikawa had serious doubts that he would be able to tee it up in the Masters due to a back injury that erupted suddenly one hole into his Players Championship a month ago, prompting him to withdraw and shut down his prep work immediately.
It wasn’t just Morikawa’s golf swing that was imperiled by the back issue. The hardest part was getting around, particularly at Augusta National, which is among the most physically demanding courses to walk.
Uncertain until last Thursday morning whether he could play the Masters, Morikawa pieced together one of the more meaningful performances in his career, finishing T7 after shooting 9-under-par 279 while struggling to get around Augusta National.
“It wasn’t easy. It was probably the toughest physical and mental battle I’ve ever had to go through. It just shows that sometimes if you believe in yourself that much you can push through some uncomfortable situations,” Morikawa said while climbing the stairs Wednesday.
Morikawa was off to one of the best starts of his career when the back issue popped up while he was making a practice swing on the par-5 11th hole at TPC Sawgrass’ Stadium Course. He won the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am and followed that with two top-seven finishes before the Players Championship.
It appeared he picked up where he had left off at the Masters but it was a different Morikawa at Augusta National.
“I don’t think I’ve ever woken up this nervous before a first round or before any round, honestly. So I’m proud of the way things kind of played out. The expectations are kind of thrown out the window right now.” – Collin Morikawa
“If you watch any of my swings, it’s the armsy-est swings I’ve ever (had),” he said at the Masters. “I think I’m just guarding, because I never know when it’s going to happen …
“When you hurt yourself swinging, it’s a completely different beast of itself because you just don’t know. There’s a little bit of a commitment, trust.”
The tricky part, Morikawa said, was how his back felt fine during his full swings. It was everything else that was difficult.
After shooting 74 in the first round at the Masters, Morikawa acknowledged both the mental and physical challenges he faced.
“I don’t think I’ve ever woken up this nervous before a first round or before any round, honestly. So I’m proud of the way things kind of played out. The expectations are kind of thrown out the window right now,” Morikawa said.
“Honestly it’s probably the toughest round I’ve ever played.”
Morikawa said he told himself to swing at half-speed, knowing that in reality he would swing faster than that. Beyond another top-10 finish, Morikawa said he learned about himself in the process.
“There is a lot of acceptance that you have to take. That’s a very hard part, not just in golf. That’s why this game is so great. You can feel so good about your golf game and go play 18 holes and it will frustrate the hell out of you,” he said
“It’s being able to accept it. It’s all about accepting and moving on.”
On Sunday at Augusta, Morikawa was seven strokes behind the leaders as he studied a birdie putt on the par-3 12th hole. He told his caddie, Mark Urbanek, that there was still time to do something special.
At Harbour Town, which leans into precision more than power, Morikawa figures to be in the mix on the weekend. He has two top-10 finishes in six starts here and arrives feeling refreshed and renewed.
Morikawa holed the birdie putt at No. 12 to start a run of five consecutive birdies, the stuff of dreams on a Masters Sunday. His name went on the leaderboard and, as the players in front of him struggled to get any separation, Morikawa was suddenly in contention – a long way from where he had been Thursday morning.
“This blew by any expectations I had for the week. Honestly, for me it was just survive each day, wake up, do the prep I needed to do, and go and tee off on (No.) 1,” Morikawa said Sunday.
At Harbour Town, which leans into precision more than power, Morikawa figures to be in the mix on the weekend. He has two top-10 finishes in six starts here and arrives feeling refreshed and renewed.
Having come down the stairs on the far side of the player bridge, Morikawa was reminded of how different the topography of Harbour Town is from Augusta National. One is like a mountain hike, the other like a beach walk.
“The walk [at Augusta] was the hardest part,” Morikawa said. “This would have been a lot easier.”