PGA Tour star Collin Morikawa narrowly missed out on winning at The Sentry on Sunday, and his post-round interview may result in a fine.
Morikawa finished 32 under par at The Sentry, which would have been enough to win all but two of the events held since it began in 1953. However, Hideki Matsuyama set a new course record by finishing 35 under par to deny Morikawa victory.
After finishing second, Morikawa gave an honest interview and praised Matsuyama while being left shocked at how his best wasn’t enough. “Yeah, —-, excuse my language, but 35-under par is, that’s low,” Morikawa said. “I mean, he was matching me yesterday shot for shot, and I felt like I was playing lights out, right?
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“Like, yes, you could leave some shots out there, but you shoot 11-under on any golf course, you’re going to be happy, right? Today he just never let up. Then you get to the third hole and the guy holes it.
“I just knew I had to be on top of everything, and just kind of let a few slip on that front nine. Played a good back nine, but to win on a course like this, conditions like this, you got to have it for 72, and I had it for 65.”
Although Morikawa gave an honest assessment, it’s likely that his misery will continue with the PGA Tour expected to fine him. Should Morikawa receive a fine, it would be “ridiculous,” according to NBC golf analysts Ryan Lavner and Rex Hoggard.
On the latest episode of ‘Golf Channel Podcast with Rex and Lav.’ Lavner said: “He has got a point! Is Collin Morikawa going to get fined for this? This is ridiculous! We want our PGA Tour players to show more personality. To be more open with the media.
“This is as open and honest as we have ever seen Collin Morikawa with the media, and he’s probably going to get a fine.” Hoggard agreed with his co-host and claimed that the PGA Tour sometimes forgets to have fun.
“In this case, I love the honesty, but he is going to get fined,” Hoggard added. “That is just how the Tour works. It is the no-fun league sometimes when it comes to these things, but you can’t debate what he said!
“Maybe he shouldn’t have said it on a family program, but you can’t debate it when he is rolling like that and you run up against someone who shoots 35 under over four rounds. He probably has to feel a bit snake-bitten here, but I love the fact that he was able to keep pace with him.”
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