AUGUSTA, Ga. — Collin Morikawa has won two majors and finished in the top five in five others, so he’s played a lot of golf with high scores on the line.
That’s why Morikawa was surprised by his level of anxiety ahead of Thursday’s opening round of the 90th Masters.
“I mean it all started when I woke up,” Morikawa said. “I have never felt as nervous as I am in my life. I have played in big teams. I have played in other events.”
But aside from two nine-hole practice rounds earlier this week at Augusta National Golf Club, Morikawa has not played since injuring his back after one hole of play in the first round of the players on March 12.
“I guess it’s the trust factor, isn’t it?” Morikawa said. “I think that when it happened in the training of the players, there is some doubt, like, what will this happen. [or] right?”
The 29-year-old birdied the first 18 holes on Thursday, posting a 2-over 74. He had four bogeys and two birdies and described it as “the hardest round I’ve ever played.”
“I’m just fighting,” Morikawa said. “It’s a fight. I don’t think I’ve ever been free out there again [trust] whole body. It’s not painful, but it’s not easy. I think the going was the hardest part.”
Morikawa said that he has been hitting balls for a week and a half, but not with ease.
“It’s like my head is spinning, my head is spinning too much,” said Morikawa. “When I wrote on Tuesday [the first hole]I honestly don’t know if I will be in touch. Warmup feels good, everything. “
Although Morikawa’s back no longer hurts, her legs “don’t feel right right now. … They don’t feel as strong as if they’re under me.”
Morikawa joked that he is probably the least active golfer on the course because of his constant anxiety.
“I’m just trying to put one foot in front of the other and see how everything goes,” Morikawa said.
Morikawa, who won the 2020 PGA Championship and the 2021 Open Championship, has been looking for another major since then. He appeared in good shape to fight for the green jacket after winning the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am on Feb. 15. Tied for seventh at the Genesis Invitational and tied for fifth at the Arnold Palmer Invitational.
The seven-time PGA Tour winner is first in scoring: approach (1.066) and third in tee-to-green (1.646) entering the week.
“I’m proud of the way things turned out,” said Morikawa. “Expectations are kind of thrown out the window right now.”
