On a course that was supposed to keep the best in the world under control, Collin Morikawa even went down 18 when he won the WGC-Workday Championship at The Concession Golf Club. Here’s everything you need to know about Sunday in Bradenton, Florida:
Among the best: Collin Morikawa (-18), Viktor Hovland (-15), Brooks Koepka (-15), Billy Horschel (-15), Scottie Scheffler (-14)
What it means: At just 24 years old, Morikawa is now part of an exclusive company. No, it has nothing to do with Workday Slam (Morikawa also won the Workday sponsored event in Muirfield Village last summer). Instead, the Cal product is only the second player under the age of 25 to win a main tournament and a WGC. The first was Tiger Woods.
WGC-Workday Championship in Concession: Full field scoreboard | Full coverage
How did this happen: Morikawa entered the final round with an advantage of two shots to 15 below. He had a slow start, bogeying No. 2, and briefly lost his lead to Horschel on the fifth green. Horschel birdied first and Morikawa quickly agreed to equalize. From there, Morikawa’s cue came to life. He sank birdie putts between 7-12 feet in numbers 7, 9 and 12, but his biggest mark was a 12-foot converted pair in par-3 11º hole, which helped Morikawa to keep his cushion comfortable on his back. Hovland was the only other player who came close, getting shot after birdies in the Nos. 12 and 13 – his birdie on the last came after he went up and down from an almost impossible spot near the edge of the forest. However, bogeys on two of Hovland’s next three holes ended his chances. Morikawa scored each of his last six holes, including two par 5s, but still managed to win by three strokes. He sank an 11 feet at the end for good measure.
Back of the day: Carlos Ortiz crowned his Eagle-birdie tournament by shooting 6 under 66 and moving up 20 places in the standings to T-15.
Photo of the day: Hovland’s cargo may have been short-lived, but let’s talk about this bird going up and down for a while.
Biggest disappointment: Rory McIlroy. OK, so he didn’t have a lot of chances to win on Sunday, but considering that he played the top nine in pair and the opponents down 12 during the week, this is a disappointing division.
Quote of the day: “It saved my life this week.” – Morikawa on a chip tip earlier in the week from Paul Azinger