Morikawa\’s Mad Dash

August 25, 2023 Morikawa\’s Mad Dash

By: Carlos Alvarez

FedEx Cup Playoffs: Morikawa (-10) Comes Out Hot, McIlroy (-7) Fights Through Back Pain & Scheffler (-9) Survives Triple-Bogey

Starting strokes, be gone! It’s straight-up golf the rest of the way. The first round of the Tour Championship at East Lake did absolutely nothing to separate the field. Instead, we enter the weekend with the tightest leaderboard in recent FedEx Cup Playoffs memory. Scottie Scheffler started hot before an abysmal back-nine meltdown. Rory McIlroy battled through back injuries to save his poor front nine. By the end of Day 1, Viktor Hovland (-10) and Keegan Bradley (-10) found their way to the top, but Collin Morikawa (-10) fired a 9-under 61 opening round to jump from the back of the field. Here are the top notes from Thursday.

  • Scottie’s Wild Start (-9) : Scheffler started with a two-stroke advantage and birdied three of his first six holes to get to 13-under, but three bogeys and a triple-bogey in the water on the 15th brought him back down to earth.
  • Rory’s Back Problems (-7): McIlroy spent the afternoon wincing through back pain as he tried to overcome a two-over on the front. He finished with three birdies in the last six holes to get back in contention.
  • Morikawa’s Mad Dash (-10): Morikawa was the dominant force in Round 1, carding seven birdies and one eagle (-9) in a bogey-free round. The 26-year-old had a solid round through 15 holes before he birdied 16-17-18 down the stretch. He holds all the momentum.

Round 1 Leaderboard (Tour Championship)

C. Morikawa (-10)

K. Bradley (-10)

V. Hovland (-10)

S. Scheffler (-9)

R. Henley (-8)

A. Schenk (-8)

R. McIlory (-7)

M. Fitzpatrick (-7)

 

Other Notable Scorecards: J. Rahm (-6), X. Schauffele (-6), W. Clark (-6), T. Hatton (-6), R. Fowler (-5), P. Cantlay (-5) | Full Leaderboard

 

Round 1 Highlights | Round 2 Tee Times

 

Read More

ESPN: Scheffler Stumbles at Tour Championship; Morikawa, Bradley get hot

Yahoo!: Morikawa Fires 61 to Share Lead at PGA Tour Finale

Golf Monthly: Frustrated Tom Watson Still Waiting for PGA Tour Answers To PIF Deal Questions

 

Photo: Kevin C. Cox / Getty Images