From favorites to party crashers, The Open at St. Andrews is truly wide open

DUBLIN, Ohio – Collin Morikawa knew what he had to do. He had just seen a prayer of a 50-foot birdie putt drop into the cup. And like those two dozen people standing by the 18th green at Muirfield Village, including Rickie Fowler, who was filming the playoff on his smart phone, he had heard Justin Thomas’ guttural yell in celebration. RELATED: Final leaderboard | What’s in Morikawa’s bag? If Morikawa was going to have any chance of winning the inaugural Workday Charity Open, he had to convert his own birdie putt from 24 feet on that first playoff hole. There was no other option. So, he gathered himself and huddled with his caddie, J.J. Jakovac. “We agreed on a line, hit it perfect exactly how we wanted, and really helped that J.T. had that putt about halfway in between during regulation,” Morikawa recalled. “So, I kind of knew what it did at the end. So as long as I got my line started on there, we had a good shot at making it.” And he did. That clutch putt didn’t seal Morikawa’s victory – he would two-putt from 10 feet on the third extra hole to make that happen – but it was the signature moment in a roller-coaster afternoon of lead changes and emotion that Thomas would later call simply a “bizarre” day. “It would have been a fun day to have some fans just in terms of the ups and downs and the shot making,” acknowledged the disappointed runner-up, who lost a two-shot lead on the front nine, then built it back to three on the back with five birdies and an eagle in an eight-hole stretch. Thomas unraveled with bogeys on the 16th and 18th holes, though, and coupled with Morikawa’s 8-foot birdie putt on No. 17, the stage was set for the frantic and frenetic playoff. As Morikawa later said, it was a “long, long 21 holes.” Later, though, after fulfilling all his media obligations, the winner could relax. He posted a photo of himself holding the crystal trophy on Twitter. Morikawa was sipping one of Muirfield Village’s signature chocolate milkshakes, too. “Well done, it’s not our last battle,” responded a respectful Thomas, who had spoken Saturday about how he expected to have Morikawa as a teammate on Presidents Cup and Ryder Cup teams in the not-too-distant future. The win was the second of Morikawa’s career, which not coincidentally gives him more victories than he has missed cuts and lifted him to sixth in the FedExCup. The steady 23-year-old, who closed with a 66, had a streak of 22 straight weekends played, second only to the great Tiger Woods, that ended at the Travelers Championship two weeks ago. Not to mention, Morikawa nearly won the Charles Schwab Challenge, the first PGA TOUR event played after the COVID-19 hiatus, five weeks ago. He was involved in a playoff there, too, but missed a 4-footer on the first extra hole to lose to Daniel Berger. Morikawa called Sunday’s win, which came on one of the TOUR’s most respected courses in Muirfield Village, “amazing.” And he’ll get a chance to make it an unusual two-in-a-row at Jack Nicklaus’ place this week at the Memorial Tournament presented by Nationwide. Morikawa made it clear on Sunday he wants to be known for more than consistency – not only by his words but by his actions. “This is a huge kind of stepping-stone,” he said. “We got No. 1 out of the way, we got No. 2, let the gates just open and let’s just keep going because obviously it was a tough loss at Colonial a month ago, but I learned a lot. I learned a lot from last week or a week and a half ago at Travelers after my missed cut. “This is just more positives, more learning for me, and I’ve got to go back to, okay, what did I do great, what did I do wrong this week, how can I get better, move on to next week and make a lot of birdies.” This time last year, Morikawa had his degree in business administration from the University of California-Berkeley in hand, but his post-graduate work was just beginning on the PGA TOUR. He earned his PGA TOUR card the hard way, gaining status as a special temporary member before winning his sixth start the Barracuda Championship, played opposite the World Golf Championships-FedEx Championship, to lock up job security for the next two years. Ironically, one of those helping him along the way was Thomas, who invited Morikawa to dinner the week he made his pro debut at the RBC Canadian Open. “He’s someone that has kind of helped me just get comfortable,” Morikawa said. “Props to him. He’s an awesome player, awesome dude, as well. “I wouldn’t say he’s like been there every practice round for me but making things easier and just telling me when we had that dinner just over a year ago, just telling me if you’re good enough, you’re going to get out here at some point. Everyone’s path is different. You don’t know how quick or how slow it’s going to get there, but if you’re good enough you’re going to get here.” Not only has Morikawa, who won a Korn Ferry Tour event as a freshman in college, gotten to the game’s highest level, he’s solidified his spot there. He’s nothing if not a fast learner, and more days like Sunday are only going to help. “It’s not a surprise,” he said honestly. “It’s just a lot of belief in myself that I could do this, and like I said, I go back to being comfortable. Comfortable, I think is the best word for a lot of these guys out here because they’ve been out here for many years. “They know the courses, they know where to hit it, and for me it’s getting as comfortable as I can as quickly as I can. I felt a lot more comfortable in this first hole playoff than I did in that last playoff at Colonial, but I still wouldn’t say I’m at where I felt perfectly fine. “By the second playoff hole today I felt very comfortable, and I knew let’s just play some golf.” And that’s what Morikawa does best.

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TULSA, Okla. – Count Rory McIlroy among the interested consumers of the copious preview content that precedes every major championship. McIlroy had never played Southern Hills before this week, not that a previous appearance would have helped much. The course underwent a dramatic renovation by Gil Hanse since it last hosted a professional tournament. To get ready for this week, McIlroy watched flyover videos from online outlets like Golf Digest and The Fried Egg to get a feel for the course. He went so far as seeking highlights from last year’s Senior PGA Championship at Southern Hills. “Just did a little bit of digging online, and it sort of seemed pretty apparent that this is an approach shot and short game — like iron play and chipping is going to be really important this week,” said McIlroy, who also shared the videos with his caddie, Harry Diamond. What once was a traditional major test, with thick Bermudagrass rough lining narrow fairways and greens, has been reimagined. The fairways have been widened and short grass is more prevalent around the greens. The new design fits modern trends while also harkening back to the Golden Age of course architecture. After playing practice rounds, McIlroy did say that the course seems wider than it appeared on video and that, despite the plethora of short grass around the greens, putting from off the green is often not an option, requiring players to execute touchy chip shots from tight lies to a putting surface that sits above them. “I think he’s done a wonderful job with it,” McIlroy said about Hanse. “Love the green complexes. I love that he gives you options off the tee. “I think you’re going to see a lot of different strategies this week, guys hitting driver where maybe other guys aren’t and vice versa. It’s a really good track. I really enjoyed playing it yesterday, and I think it’s going to be a wonderful test this week.”

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It was only a month ago when we lost Pete Carril, arguably most notable as the men’s basketball coach at Princeton University for 30 years. Through his tenure into the mid-1990s, Carril deployed an offense that yielded low-scoring games and, therefore, more opportunities for victory. It demanded similar skill sets among the players and a higher floor of their weakest components to stay competitive. RELATED: Play Pick ‘Em Live | Schedule of Events | Nine Things to Know about Quail Hollow Club It also required commitment and discipline to play as a unit. Separate but connected. Chess, athletically. Depending on your perspective, it was either graceful and artistic or agonizing and boring to watch, but it was two things always – compelling and successful. Carril is enshrined in Halls of Fame, plural. The Presidents Cup has been a one-sided affair since it was introduced in 1994, so it might require the Internationals to steal pages out of Carril’s playbook. For how that can translates to golf, the format of the competition and more, continue reading below the full-field ranking of the participants. NOTE: In a match-play team competition consisting of five sessions over four days, only one of which is Singles on Sunday, and with matchups and momentum determined in real time, the ranking of the players below reflects projected impact on the event. INTERNATIONALS Rob’s prediction of the outcome will be included in a special Expert Picks on Tuesday. Quail Hollow Club in Charlotte, North Carolina, hosts the 14th edition of the Presidents Cup. The U.S. leads the series all-time, 11-1-1. Given that record, it could be argued plainly that International team captain Trevor Immelman is in a position to lose, but it’s entirely the opposite. When history suggests that you have no chance, there’s nothing to lose and everything to gain. For example, when Carril’s Princeton squad squared off against the defending national champion, UCLA, in the first round of 1996 NCAA Men’s Basketball Tournament, the Tigers were in the same position .., and they prevailed, 43-41. Forget style points, it’s all about the objective. For Immelman’s crew to join the 1998 team as Internationals to win the Presidents Cup, it will need to be a cohesive unit, plan meticulously in advance of every session, retain focus on every stroke and set whatever result aside to be ready for the next game. Play until the whistle blows because becoming legends of the competition is at the finish line. Regardless of par over time, Quail Hollow annually has been one of the most difficult courses on the PGA TOUR. It’s been a par 71 since the PGA Championship was contested there in 2017. It’s also among the longest tracks visited regularly. For the Presidents Cup, it will be able to stretch to 7,576 yards, but serious elasticity on a handful of holes will prevent that. Speaking of the flexible, the course has been rerouted to elevate the potential impact of The Green Mile. Traditionally holes 16, 17 and 18 for the Wells Fargo Championship, they have been shifted to play as Nos. 13, 14 and 15 for the Presidents Cup. It’s still a par-4-3-4 sequence, but now the signature stretch of the stage is all but promised to factor into the result of every match. Overall, holes 1-8 are the same as they are for the WFC, but Nos. 12-18 are Nos. 9-15 this week, so each is three sooner in the round than the familiar walk. Nos. 16, 17 and 18 for the Presidents Cup are Nos. 10, 11 and 9, respectively, for the WFC. Because of the challenge of the course proper, birdies will be good gets, even in Four-ball, so the Internationals should be encouraged to attempt to eliminate problems with safer and saner decisions. Elevate the floor of possibilities. Retain possession of the ball, work the clock, be more patient and let the hosts make mistakes. Of course, United States captain Davis Love III is no stranger to anything inside the ropes, so he’ll be opposing with a front line worthy of keeping the trophy for the ninth consecutive time. He also has the luxury of natural combinations for Foursomes and Four-ball, whereas Immelman is saddled with language barriers for even basic messaging. However, and this goes for all, golf is golf no matter the nationality. Like you, Mother Nature also wants to kick back and watch. Largely favorable conditions are forecast throughout the four-day competition. After a sweltering launch in mid-90s heat for Foursomes on Thursday, it will cool into the 70s for Friday’s Four-ball. Wind could be an influencer on either day. Gradual heating will occur on Saturday for Foursomes in the morning and Four-ball in the afternoon, with another bump into the mid-80s poised for Sunday’s Singles. Rain is not expected at any time. ROB BOLTON’S SCHEDULE PGATOUR.com’s Rob Bolton recaps and previews every tournament from numerous perspectives. Look for his following contributions as scheduled. MONDAY: Power Rankings TUESDAY*: Sleepers, Draws & Fades WEDNESDAY: Pick ’Em Preview SUNDAY: Medical Extensions, Qualifiers, Reshuffle

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