As for the hidebound opinion that Augusta National may only be subdued by those who have come to know every lie, hillock and loblolly, Collin Morikawa has a different notion. Like lace the spikes, grip a club and, as he said last month, “see how Augusta’s going to be in my head.”
Maybe not Sarazen’s swing-thought, but that’s just what Morikawa did Monday, walking the course for the first time, recognizing what he could, deciphering what he might and trying to get a handle on the whole Masters deal. And how did that go?
“Feels like it’s a place you want to be,” he said. “It’s a place you’ve kind of watched growing up and to finally play 18 holes here as an actual golfer in the Masters is something special. But I’ve got to remember, you know, I’m here to play golf and I’ve got to kind of figure out how am I going to play my best golf out here.”
This could so easily be dismissed as one 23-year old’s journaling about his first few months at a treacherous new job, now at a dangerous place that has swallowed whole generations of players before him. But in his brief career, Morikawa has already demonstrated what can happen when he figures out how to play his best golf. Still three months shy of 24, he has won his first major -- the PGA championship in Harding Park in August -- and currently ranks No. 4 in the world.
The value of local knowledge can’t be over-valued here. There is a reason Fuzzy Zoeller remains the only player to win the Masters in his first try (1979) since the first Roosevelt administration. Still, Morikawa believes that has little to do with him.
“Yes, it’s the Masters ... but they come out ready to play golf and that’s all they care about,” he said “And I think I’ve fast-tracked that process a little bit, even though I haven’t played these courses or played the Masters before. I’m comfortable. I’m comfortable coming out here. Everyone’s different, but that’s just me.”
Since turning pro 18 months ago, Morikawa’s hit fourth gear in no time. In his first 34 pro events, he has won three times, finished 11 times in the top 10 and missed just four cuts. But the PGA was the great accelerator, an undersized kid (5-foot-9, 160 pounds) with a business degree from Cal-Berkeley (and in four years too) fending off Dustin Johnson and Paul Casey on Sunday at Harding Park.
His round-flipping eagle on No. 16 that day became immediate PGA lore. He became just the fourth player since World War II to win that title before turning 24. The others: Jack Nicklaus, Tiger Woods and Rory McIlroy. Not that the public has been picking him out of the crowd or anything.
“I don’t think I get recognized, especially with a (surgical) mask,” he said. "I don’t get recognized anywhere and I love that because for now, I can at least go out to dinner or get something to eat. I’m a huge foodie, so I want to keep that part of my life.
“But just being called a major champion, I think that’s been the biggest difference, obviously.”
His recent performance does not indicate momentum. In his last four events, he managed a 12th-place finish in the JC Cup in Las Vegas and a couple of missed cuts, including the U.S. Open at Winged Foot. But he insists he swing is fine: “The game feels like where it should be, where it was before Harding.”
The rainy, breezy conditions this week will make his first Masters more challenging. And who knows how Augusta National plays in the fall? But if the conversation turns to the traditional Saturday pin placement on No. 16 or how No. 5 plays now with the new tees, Morikawa will learn as he goes. But learning the course can’t be more important this week than playing his ball.
“Shoot, I wish I had played here 15, 20 times, however many times (older players) have played it,” he said. "I wish I had that knowledge, but I don’t. That’s going to grow over the years I keep coming back and I keep playing. But for now I have to feel like I can still compete with these guys. It’s not like I’m behind the 8-ball already and I have a disadvantage.
“On Thursday, we all start at even par.”
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