Check in every week for the unfiltered opinions of our writers and editors as they break down the hottest topics in the sport, and join the conversation by tweeting us at @golf_com. This week, we discuss the significance of Anthony Kim’s win, Collin Morikawa’s triumph at Pebble Beach and more.
Anthony Kim came from five strokes back to chase down Jon Rahm and Bryson DeChambeau and win LIV Golf Adelaide and claim his first victory since 2010. Given Kim’s 12 1/2-year absence from pro golf — and the fact he was basically never heard from during that span — where would you say this victory ranks among some of the biggest that have happened in the last several years? Is it the most impressive or biggest since Tiger’s 2019 Masters win? Or does Rory still hold that honor?
Josh Berhow, managing editor (@Josh_Berhow): I think it depends on what superlative you want to use. I don’t consider it bigger than Rory’s grand slam-clinching win last year, but I do consider it more shocking or impressive. A lot of people — us included — will try to put the proper context around this, but it all depends on the word we use. Is it historical? I’m not sure it’s that heavy yet. But it might be the most impressive win since Tiger triumphed at Augusta in 2019. Regardless of one’s opinion of LIV Golf vs. the PGA Tour, the man was still away from the game for over a decade and then won while playing a final round alongside Bryson DeChambeau and Jon Rahm. It would be different if those guys faded early in the tournament, but he had to play with them, catch up to them and then hold them off. That has to count for something.
Josh Sens, senior writer (@joshsens): Depends on the context in which you frame it. In the historical sense, it’s nowhere near as significant or impressive as what Tiger or Rory pulled off at Augusta. The event simply doesn’t matter that much to most fans or to the game itself. But as an individual achievement, it’s every bit as monumental as what Woods and McIlroy accomplished. Kim was in the wilderness for more than a decade, and there wasn’t much indication he was ever going to win again on any level. As he was coming down the stretch, this one must have had the weight of a major. And he came through. In that sense, it was an epic feat.
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James Colgan, news and features editor (@jamescolgan26): Let’s not be ridiculous here. No, Anthony Kim winning a LIV event does not rank as the most impressive or biggest victory since Tiger at the Masters. Hell, it doesn’t rank even in the top 10. It’s wildly impressive given the depth of his personal strife and the length between pro victories. But no. No.
There’s a large population of golf fans who started following the game when Kim, now 40, was away from it. Why does this victory matter? Why should they think it’s important?
Berhow: It matters because this guy was theman on the PGA Tour. Young and cocky and talented and fun, he was the exact type of player young fans cling to. In a way, his mysterious absence only added to the lore. He hasn’t played as well on LIV the last couple of years, but it’s nice to see his story, even if he doesn’t win again, get this type of storybook moment.
Sens: That’s all true. One of our former colleagues aptly described him as golf’s yeti, a near-mythic figure. But beyond that, there’s the simple fact of what he overcame. Kim didn’t just lose his game, as many great players have in the past. He left the game entirely and stayed away for twice as long as he’d played it for a living. The golf gods don’t allow that kind of thing. You don’t get to just walk away and pick it up again more than a decade later. But that’s exactly what he did.
Colgan: Hey, I’m actually one of those golf fans. I was 12 years old and nothing more than a casual fan when Anthony Kim last won a golf tournament. I knew of him, but I certainly didn’t know him. What golf fans like me should know about AK’s victory is that it takes a golfer of unusual talent to fall to his depths and return. He is a golfer of unusual talent, even if his resume doesn’t show it. And that makes his story much more fascinating.
What’s next for AK? Do you consider this a one-off? Or based on his play over the last month, do you expect him to stick around among the league’s top tier of players?
Berhow: I think it’s too early to say he’s here to contend every week, although the fact that he got through LIV Promotions to get a spot in 2026 proves his game has been improving. It will be a really fun storyline to see play out this year.
Sens: The only thing predictable in professional golf is Scottie Scheffler. Everything else is anyone’s guess. But I’m with Berhow. In the years since LIV launched, the most compelling plotlines have centered on who might join or leave the league. This is the rare example of an interesting on-course story.
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Colgan: Hopefully a few more wins! If you’re a golf fan invested in the growth of golf, the only thing better than one planet-shattering victory is 10 of them.
Collin Morikawa birdied the 72nd hole to win the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am by one and claim his first victory in 2 1/2 years. What did you think of his week? And if there’s one top player destined to bounce back in 2026, is he your pick?
Berhow: This week kind of came out of nowhere for Collin. He missed the cut in Hawaii and tied for 54th in Phoenix last week, although his 2025 results don’t suggest he was lost or anything (18 of 21 cuts and 13 top 25s). It’s always going to be about the putter for him, and Pebble’s Poa annua greens are unpredictable. He’s about as good of a bounce-back candidate as I can think of.
Sens: Morikawa played a lot of good golf last year, but seemed edgy and agitated and just a hair off from the moment Russell Henley chipped in for eagle on him at the Arnold Palmer Invitational. He looked back to his old self for a lot of this week. But that included some iffy moments with his chipping, a relative weakness in his game. He flubbed one on 14, and I thought it was interesting that he chose to putt from a slightly shaggy lie today on 18 in a place where some guys likely would have chipped. I wonder about his confidence around the greens. But a win’s a win. And though we haven’t heard much from Patrick Cantlay or Max Homa lately, I’m with Berhow. Morikawa seems like the most likely to reassert himself in 2026.
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Colgan: I was super impressed with Collin’s week. Not just because he played great golf when it counted on the weekend, but because he did so despite true weakness with his putter. It’s not a winning formula in the long-term to play great but putt like hell and win anyway, but Scottie Scheffler has shown us how far a little confidence with the flatstick can go.
Who is more bummed leaving Pebble Beach: Scottie Scheffler, who for the second straight week shot in the 70s on Thursday but played near flawless golf after only to come up a little short again? Or Akshay Bhatia, who led by five after 45 holes but tied for 6th?
Berhow: Akshay! But a good learning experience for a really good, young player. Something tells me Scottie will be fine.
Sens: Bhatia by a long shot. I don’t imagine Scheffler will be giving this week a second thought.
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Colgan: I thought Scottie was the happiest he looked all week after just losing out on Sunday afternoon. His game is still red-hot, he just wasn’t scoring. Akshay had lightning in a bottle and lost it.
The Tour heads from one Signature Event at Pebble Beach to the next at Riviera in Los Angeles. From a course standpoint, is this the best back-to-back combo on the Tour schedule? If not, what is?
Berhow: Hmmm…. A good question. I think it is, and I’ll give it the edge over the Augusta National-to-Harbour Town stretch. The Renaissance Club (Scottish Open) to Royal Birkdale (The Open) is also going to be a good one.
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Sens: Augusta to Harbour Town is a great one-two. But Pebble to Riviera is the only stretch in the calendar with two consecutive World Top 100s. I’ll give it the edge.
Colgan: Yes! Pebble is a hell of an appetizer, and Riv is a hell of a main course. Though, back when they were played together, I’d certainly hear an argument for Memorial-U.S. Open. Two straight shin-kicks.
Nduka Odizor is widely regarded as the most successful tennis player Nigeria has ever produced.
Odizor reached a career high ATP singles ranking of world No. 52 and No. 20 in doubles in 1984, figures that remain the highest ever achieved by a Nigerian player. During the 1980s, he competed regularly on the ATP Tour at a time when very few African players were present at the top level.
He is also the only Nigerian to have played in the main draw of all four Grand Slam tournaments: the Australian Open, French Open, Wimbledon, and the US Open. That achievement still stands unmatched.
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All through his career, Odizor spent several seasons inside the top 100, reached ATP finals in singles and doubles, and recorded wins against established tour players. His performances helped raise Nigeria’s profile in international tennis.
After retiring, Odizor continued being involved in the sport through coaching and player development, continuing to contribute to tennis in Nigeria.
Decades later, his records remain intact, and his career is still the benchmark for Nigerian tennis.
Tilak Varma had a golden day with the ball in the T20 World Cup 2026 high-voltage clash between India and Pakistan at the R Premadasa Stadium in Colombo on Sunday, February 15. The part-time off-spinner struck off his first delivery, dismissing Shadab Khan, as the Men in Green lost their last recognized batter before being bundled out for 114 in 18 overs while chasing 176. It was Varma’s first wicket of his T20 World Cup career and his fourth scalp in the format.
The 23-year-old finished with figures of 1/11 in his two overs. He was equally with the bat, scoring 25 runs off 24 balls as India won the match by 61 runs.
Tilak Varma – Source: Getty
Here are four other specialist batters who have taken a wicket in the T20 World Cups:
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Joe Root
Joe Root – Source: Getty
England’s Joe Root starred with the ball against the West Indies in the T20 World Cup 2016 final. The off-spinner dismissed both openers, Chris Gayle and Johnson Charles, for single digits as WI lost both their openers for just five runs while chasing 156. It was his only over in the T20 tournament. Unfortunately, England lost the match by four wickets. Overall, Root took six wickets in nine innings at an economy rate of 9.93. Since then, Root has taken 73 and 30 wickets in Tests and ODIs, respectively.
On the batting front. Root has amassed 22413 runs in 430 matches, including 61 tons and 116 half-centuries.
Michael Clarke
Michael Clarke – Source: Getty
Australia’s Michael Clarke took wickets in the first three editions of the T20 World Cups. The left-arm spinner dismissed Bangladesh’s Tamim Iqbal for his first wicket in the ICC tournament in 2007. He took two wickets in the inaugural edition and then followed it up with one wicket apiece in the 2009 and 2010 T20 World Cups. Overall, Clarke took six wickets in 15 innings at an economy rate of 8.65. Besides T20Is, he also scalped 31 and 57 wickets in Tests and ODIs.
With the bat, Michael Clarke scored 17112 runs in 394 matches across formats, comprising 36 tons and 86 fifties.
Mohammad Ashraful
Mohammad Ashraful – Source: Getty
Like Michael Clarke, Mohammad Ashraful took wickets in multiple T20 World Cups. The part-time spinner dismissed Morlon Samuels for his first wicket in the inaugural edition of the ICC event. He then dismissed Clarke in the 2010 T20 World Cup. Overall, he scalped eight wickets in as many innings at an economy rate of 9.13. Apart from T20Is, he also took 21 and 18 wickets in Tests and ODIs.
Ashraful was amongst the leading run-getters for Bangladesh during his cricket career, scoring 6,655 runs in 259 matches, including nine hundreds and 30 half-centuries.
Steve Smith
Steve Smith – Source: Getty
When Steve Smith first burst onto the scene, he was a leg-spinner before turning into a specialist batter in international cricket. He picked up 11 wickets in seven matches at an economy rate of 7.09 during the 2009 T20 World Cup. Overall, he took 17 wickets in as many T20I innings at an economy rate of 7.77. Other than T20Is, Smith took 19 and 28 wickets in Tests and ODIs.
On the batting front, he has amassed 17657 runs in 360 games across formats, including 49 centuries and 84 fifties.
Feb 15, 2026; Inglewood, California, USA; Team USA Stripes forward Jaylen Brown (7) of the Boston Celtics shoots a lay up in game four against Team Stars during the 75th NBA All Star Game at Intuit Dome. Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee-Imagn Images
When Boston Celtics All-Star Jaylen Brown spoke with reporters after Sunday’s All-Star Game in Inglewood, Calif., the topic quickly went from basketball to an incident between Brown and the Beverly Hills Police Department a night earlier.
And Brown’s account of events stands in stark contrast to those of the Beverly Hills PD.
On Saturday night, police were called to a home where Brown was hosting what he called a “panel” — an event for his personal brand, 741, and Oakley, of which Brown says he is a brand partner.
But when police showed up, they said the event had to end because a permit for the event was previously denied.
“On Saturday, February 14, the Beverly Hills Police Department (BHPD) responded to an event taking place at a private residence in the Trousdale neighborhood of (Beverly Hills),” the BHPD told The Boston Globe in statement Sunday. “An event permit had been applied for and denied by the City due to previous violations associated with events at the address.
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“Despite the fact that the permit was denied, organizers still chose to proceed with inviting hundreds of guests knowing that it was not allowed to occur. BHPD responded and shut down the unpermitted event.”
The claim about the permit was one of the issues that angered Brown.
“That was not true,” Brown told reporters. “We didn’t need a permit because the owner of the house, that was his space. We were family friends. He opened up the festivities to us so we didn’t have to. We never applied for one. … I didn’t have to pay for the house or anything. They just opened it up. I had to pay for the build-out, but it was hundreds of thousands of dollars wasted for an event that was supposed to be positive.”
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Saturday night, a video showing Brown speaking with a police officer at the house was posted to social media. In the video, Brown is seen repeatedly asking why the event was being shut down, with the officer said “the City” was shutting down the event.
“(I’m) in LA, we’re just trying to have an event, a panel, talking about culture, talking about future, talking about leadership, and for whatever reason I feel like we’re being targeted,” Brown told the camera.
Back at the All-Star Game, Brown said the house belonged to Jim Jannard, the founder of Oakley, and that he did not have to pay to use the house for the event.
“I’m offended by Beverly Hills, by the statement they put out, like we applied for something and didn’t get it and we did it anyway,” Brown added. “Like we were insubordinate. I know how to follow the rules. … It just seemed like somebody, you know, didn’t want whatever we had going on, to go on. Because out of everyone to be doing something (in the neighborhood), I was the only one that gets shut down.”
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During the interview, Brown repeated that several hundreds of thousands of dollars were spent setting up the event, and that the owner of the house is considering filing a lawsuit.
“It just leaves a bad taste in your mouth,” he added. “I don’t think the BPDH made the right call here. The statement they put out was not accurate.”
Feb 11, 2026; Milan, Italy; Silver medalists Madison Chock and Evan Bates of the United States and gold medalists Laurence Fournier Beaudry pose after receiving their medals during the Milano Cortina 2026 Olympic Winter Games at Milano Ice Skating Arena. Mandatory Credit: Amber Searls-Imagn Images
MILAN, Italy — U.S. Figure Skating did not appeal Madison Chock and Evan Bates’ score from the ice dance final, which drew the ire of some fans and forced the veteran Americans to settle for silver at the Milan Cortina Games.
Chock and Bates, who had been undefeated all season, said they felt like they had skated a winning performance in Wednesday’s free dance.
Their fans agreed, and created an online petition calling for the International Skating Union (ISU) and International Olympic Committee to review the scoring, which led to France’s Laurence Fournier Beaudry and Guillaume Cizeron claiming gold.
U.S. Figure Skating praised the pair’s “world-class” performances in Northern Italy, which included playing a key role in securing the U.S. a gold medal in the team event earlier in the Games.
“There has been a lot of thoughtful, and at times emotional, discussion about the ice dance competition in Milan,” U.S. Figure Skating CEO Matt Farrell said in a statement on Sunday.
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“Working together with Madi and Evan after the Games, we will have thoughtful and intentional discussions about the best way to support them and the future of the sport,” he said.
“For now, we plan to join them in supporting the success of the U.S. Figure Skating team in Milan.”
While U.S. Figure Skating’s statement did not explicitly say it would not appeal the scoring, the 24-hour window of time for an appeal to be requested has passed.
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Beaudry and Cizeron won the gold with a total of 225.82 points, while the Americans earned 224.39.
Much of the outrage stemmed from the fact French judge Jezabel Dabouis favored Fournier Beaudry and Cizeron by nearly eight points over the three-time world champion Americans in the free dance.
The ISU on Friday said it had “full confidence in the scores given,” adding that multiple layers of review are built into the judging system to reduce discrepancies and ensure fairness.
Chock and Bates added their silver medal to two team gold medals, including the one they played a key role in capturing for the U.S. at the Milan Cortina Games.
Chisora is a former British and European champion who has come up short in his two world title opportunities, while Wilder is the former WBC heavyweight champion, who held the belt for five years and made 10 successful defences.
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One man who knows each fighter extremely well is Fury, who has taken on both Chisora and Wilder on three occasions, beating ‘Del Boy’ each time, whilst having two wins and one draw against ‘The Bronze Bomber.’
Speaking on social media after the upcoming showdown, Fury insisted that he sees Chisora earning a knockout victory.
“I think this is a great fight. I’ve fought both of these men three times each. I think it’s a very good fight but on this one I’m going to go with my boy Chisora for a stoppage.”
Fury also declared that a title should be added to the bout.
“There should be a belt on the line too. One of you sanctioning bodies you’ve got two legendary fighters here. A world champion with 10 title defences from the USA and an absolute warlord from the United Kingdom who has fought everybody and never ducked anybody and would have been a good heavyweight in any era in Derek. Put a belt on the line.”
With Oleksandr Usyk holding the WBC, WBA and IBF titles and Fabio Wardley the current WBO champion, a belt won’t be on the line in the Chisora vs. Wilder clash, but the winner could well earn themselves a future crack at world honours.
Jerome Tang chewed out his players after their 91-62 blowout home loss to Cincinnati on Wednesday. Four days later, he’s been fired “for cause” from the Kansas State coaching job.
According to ESPN, the basis for the for-cause firing is language in Jerome Tang’s contract that references any activity that brings “public disrepute, embarrassment, ridicule” to Kansas State. The school’s athletic director, Gene Taylor, made a statement about the decision.
“This was a decision that was made in the best interest of our university and men’s basketball program, Taylor said.
“Recent public comments and conduct, in addition to the program’s overall direction, have not aligned with K-State’s standards for supporting student-athletes and representing the university. We wish Coach Tang and his family all the best moving forward.”
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The Kansas State Wildcats have just one win in the Big 12 Conference this season. Tang followed up the public criticism by having the team play against No. 3-ranked Houston without player names on the back of their jerseys.
“These dudes do not deserve to wear this uniform,” Tang said after the 78-64 loss to the Cougars.
“There will be very few of them in it next year. I’m embarrassed for the university, I’m embarrassed for our fans, our student section. It is ridiculous. I have no answer. No words.”
The program will shortly name an interim coach while conducting a search for a full-time leader.
Jerome Tang disagrees with “for cause” firing
The Kansas State Wildcats hired Jerome Tang on March 21, 2022. He led the program to an Elite Eight appearance in his first season. However, he could achieve similar feats in subsequent seasons with the program.
“I am deeply disappointed with the university’s decision and strongly disagree with the characterization of my termination, Tang told ESPN.
“I have always acted with integrity and faithfully fulfilled my responsibilities as head coach.”
The 2023 Naismith College Coach of the Year signed a contract extension through the 2029-30 season, and there is still $18.67 million remaining on that contract. He plans to fight the for-cause firing.
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Kansas State fired fourth-year basketball coach Jerome Tang on Sunday, a source told CBS Sports.
Athletic director Gene Taylor subsequently revealed late Sunday night he made the decision to fire Tang following K-State’s loss at houston on Saturday. The move comes less than four days after Tang’s postgame rant went viral following an embarrassing 91-62 home loss to Cincinnati on Thursday. a
“This was a decision that was made in the best interest of our university and men’s basketball program,” Taylor said in a statement. “Recent public comments and conduct, in addition to the program’s overall direction, have not aligned with K-State’s standards for supporting student-athletes and representing the university. We wish coach Tang and his family all the best moving forward.”
The Wildcats are 10-15 and in the midst of their second-worst season in the past 20-plus years. Kansas State ranks 101st at KenPom.com and is 1-11 in the Big 12. The team is headed toward a second straight sub-.500 season despite being one of the bigger spenders in the transfer portal the past two offseasons.
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Kansas State will attempt to fire Tang for cause. Tang has a buyout of more than $18 million, per the terms of his contract, but Taylor believes Tang’s public criticisms of the players and the response that press conference spurred in the national media violated the terms of his contract.
Tang released a statement disputing Kansas State’s assessment of the program.
“I am deeply disappointed with the university’s decision and strongly disagree with the characterization of my termination. I have always acted with integrity and faithfully fulfilled my responsibilities as head coach,” Tang said. “I am grateful to the players, staff, and fans who make this program so special. I remain proud of what we built together and confident that I have always acted in the best interests of the university and our student-athletes.”
Associate head coach Matthew Driscoll has been named interim head coach for the rest of the season.
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LISTEN: Matt Norlander breaks down Tang’s final days at K-State on this emergency edition of the Eye on College Basketball podcast.
Tang went 71-57 in less than four seasons on the job, including a 29-39 mark in the Big 12. He was hired in 2022 and an immediate success: He guided the Wildcats to the Elite Eight with a No. 3 seed and finished 26-10 thanks to the dynamic duo of point guard Markquis Nowell and forward Keyontae Johnson. Nowell’s 19 assists in a Sweet 16 victory vs. Michigan State at Madison Square Garden set both an NCAA Tournament record and an optimistic tone for the Tang era, but it’s been a litany of letdowns ever since.
K-State is coming off a 78-64 loss at No. 3 Houston on Saturday. Tang had the players’ names removed from the back of their jerseys for that game in a questionable move that followed his criticism of KSU players following the Wildcats’ loss to the Bearcats.
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“This was embarrassing,” Tang said Wednesday night at his press conference. “These dudes do not deserve to wear this uniform. There will be very few of them in it next year. I’m embarrassed for the university, I’m embarrassed for our fans, our student section. It is just ridiculous.”
That’s the quote that has Tang’s legal team and Kansas State’s lawyers set to battle in the weeks ahead. If K-State wins, it won’t pay Tang another dime. If it loses, Tang will have more than $18.5 million coming his way. There is also the realistic possibility that the parties wind up settling somewhere in the wide gulf between those two numbers.
GoPowerCat’s team of Kansas State insiders are providing on-the-ground updates on every development and insider scoop surrounding the Wildcats. Sign up for a VIP membership now and join the conversation to experience the power of the GoPowerCat community where fans connect and get even more insider information from our experts on staff!
Last year, Rory McIlroy arrived at idyllic Pebble Beach and announced he wanted to play more like Scottie Scheffler. The plan was to fight his own aggressive urges, take the smart route and never shoot himself out of a tournament. If you give yourself more chances to win, as Scheffler does, eventually the cards will fall in your favor more and more.
A year later, McIlroy returned to one of golf’s great cathedrals as the defending champion and was asked to sum up Scheffler’s run atop the golf world, which included a string of 17 consecutive top 10s (18 if you include the Hero World Challenge) entering the week. Scheffler’s latest top 10 was a T3 at the WM Phoenix Open where opened with a 2-over 73 before going 65-67-64 over the final three rounds to miss out on the playoff by a shot.
McIlroy critiqued his own inconsistency last year post-Masters while lauding Scheffler’s ability to piece things together and rise up the leaderboard whether he has his A-game or not. To McIlroy, one word and one golf icon came to mind.
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“He’s relentless,” McIlroy said.
“I’ll never stop singing Scottie’s praises because he’s incredible at what he’s doing and the way he does it, and that’s never — I’ve had nice runs like that, but I’ve always been a little more up and down,” McIlroy said. “I think anyone that wants to catch Scottie or get anywhere close is going to have to consistently bring that sort of game week in and week out like he does. He’s really the first one since Tiger that’s doing this.”
Last week in Phoenix, Scheffler revealed a layer of his greatness when he talked about how he was so discouraged after his first round that he didn’t even want to try and dig it out of the dirt. But his competitive desire to not only make the cut, but to continue to be a constant presence atop the leaderboard won out. Where some players have down weeks or let the rope slip when they face an early leaderboard climb, part of Scheffler’s greatness lies in his unwillingness to give in.
With McIlroy’s praise still hanging in the air above Stillwater Cove, Scheffler went to work making them ring true.
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The World No. 1 opened with an even-par 72, starting 10 shots back of 18-hole leader Ryo Hisatsune. Scheffler admitted after his first round it would be difficult to make up ground but he’d do his best. A second-round 66 followed. Then, a 67. Still, Scheffler remained eight shots behind 54-hole leader Akshay Bhatia. The hill was steep. But Scheffler’s greatness is built in his preparation and his process. He looms over golf because he focuses on the micro — the next step — and not the macro.
“I didn’t have really any crazy expectations or anything on the day, I just wanted to show up and have a good attitude and play some good golf,” Scheffler said on Sunday along the coast of the Pacific Ocean.
He opened with a birdie at the first and an eagle at No. 2. He birdied three, made an eagle at six and followed that with another birdie.
Relentless.
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He made the turn six-under 30 and was suddenly two off the lead. Scheffler birdied 10 and 11 and was suddenly tied for the lead. He slid back with bogeys at 12 and 15 sandwiching a birdie at 14. Scheffler arrived at the final hole likely needing an eagle to have a chance at a playoff. With the wind howling off the Pacific Ocean, Scheffler split the fairway on the par-5 and then stuffed his approach from 186 yards to under three feet. He rolled in the putt to tie the lead and post 20 under.
Relentless.
The gravitational force of unrelenting greatness is hard to escape. On Sunday, Collin Morikawa barely managed to wriggle out of Scheffler’s grasp, playing the final four holes in two under to capture his first win in over 800 days.
For Scheffler, it was a T4 finish after another opening round where he was stuck in neutral. But it was also another example of what McIlroy and others know and feel at every stop in which they tee it up alongside Scottie Scheffler. His name is a fixture on the leaderboard because he wills it to be.
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“I’m very proud of sticking with it, not giving up even when I felt like things were going against me this week. Just kept fighting, kept trying to hit shots, kept trying to execute,” Scheffler said.
Expect the same story next week at the Genesis Invitational at Riviera. At this point, there’s no reason to expect anything different.
PEBBLE BEACH, Calif. — Collin Morikawa dreamt about his winning moment. He spent months visualizing it. On a mid-week call with his mental coach, Rick Sessinghaus, he refocused on it. After a Saturday 62, he allowed himself to believe in it.
And then, finally, Morikawa reached the 72nd hole at the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am and the winning moment arrived. A birdie on the last and he would be a PGA Tour champion for the first time in two-and-a-half years.
The only thing standing between the two-time major champion and destiny?
To be fair, Bridgeman wasn’t too worried about his role in the proceedings. At the time he arrived in the 18th fairway on Sunday afternoon, Bridgeman still had an outside shot at a victory himself, needing an eagle and a Morikawa par on the par-5 last to force a three-way playoff.
But then he blew his second shot long of the rocks and onto the beach, and a very unfortunate sequence of events unraveled.
First came a disaster from the beach: a lengthy rules discussion that led to a heavy wedge shot which plunked off the rocks and plunged into the ocean. Then came a second lengthy rules discussion, this time about the legitimacy of a drop from on the other side of the beach, up by the fairway. Then a long walk up to the area of the safe drop. Then, thankfully, an approach shot up to the green that landed on the putting surface. Bridgeman hustled up to the putting surface, but by then the damage was done: Morikawa had been standing in the fairway over his ball — facing a terrifying second shot and needing a birdie to win the golf tournament — for more than 20 minutes.
“I knew what I had to do,” Morikawa said later. “I think I paced all the way to the ocean, like, 10 times at least. I just had to keep moving. You know, it’s weird to say, but these long breaks. I mean, it’s just not good for anyone to stand still.”
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When the intensifying winds at Pebble Beach sent Bridgeman’s ball oscillating around the green, requiring a third rules intercession, the fans at home could do little but laugh. Mercifully, Bridgeman ultimately holed his putt for an adventurous — and time-consuming — bogey. Back in the fairway, it was now, finally, Morikawa’s time.
As he settled his nerves, Morikawa thought back to the dream. To the vision. To the conversation with Sessinghaus. To the belief. He thought about how that vision sounded.
“When I first came out and turned pro, like I didn’t care about honestly making cuts or top-20s, I came out to win,” Morikawa said. “I wanted to come out and win, win the weekend, win the tournament.”
With the tournament resting on one suddenly long-awaited swing, he collected himself, breathed and fired — watching as his ball carried over the famed tree in the 18th fairway at Pebble Beach and landed safely on the edge of the green.
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A simple up-and-down for birdie was secured. The tournament was won. Morikawa could do nothing but bask in his first victory on U.S. soil in five long years — ending the winless streak that had hung over his career for two-and-a-half seasons with a victory at one of America’s most heralded golf courses.
“It’s hard to think that you’re still that same person, just a little bit wiser, a little bit, you know, more mature, but there’s, there’s a lot of hope, and there’s a bright future ahead,” Morikawa said. “I’m going to enjoy this one for sure.”
As Morikawa enjoyed the fulfillment of that vision from off the side of the 18th green, he could not hold back his emotion. His voice wavered.
“When I first turned pro, I just looked too far ahead,” he said. “I think I’m gonna change that perspective and just enjoy this. Shoot, we’re at Pebble Beach right now, so I’m gonna enjoy this one.”
;)
;)
;)
