Collin Morikawa’s pre-tournament press conference at the Genesis Invitational was rather unusual by PGA Tour standards, and the two-time major champion found himself under the gun as the slow play issue came to the fore.
As a California native, the unfortunate events that lead to the Genesis Invitational being moved from its traditional home at Riviera in L.A. to Torrey Pines near San Diego were addressed and Morikawa expressed his deep laments about the fires that ravaged the Los Angeles region and explained how he’s donating money to charitable causes once again this week.
“Yeah, starting at Pebble, decided to donate $1,000 per birdie and $2,000 per eagle between Pebble Beach and this week to the California Community Foundation and the L.A. Fire Department Foundation,” he said.
“I know this week the tournament I believe is partnering with California Rises, so there’s a lot of foundations out there, a lot of communities that are in need, a lot of people and families that are in need. Just to kind of do a little bit of support and just create awareness.
“We’ve seen this too often. I think even with the most recent one for me that hit home was the Lahaina fires. Fires happen. People kind of forget and then you move on to the next cycle. I realize that’s how news and media works, but for how big of an impact Los Angeles has gone through with everything with the fires, you just have to keep creating awareness as much as you can. It’s amazing to help out in my little bit and hopefully we make a lot of birdies starting Thursday.”
The conversation then took a shift and the PGA Tour’s slow play problem was addressed.
Morikawa feels that using range finders can help quicken the pace of play up a little, but not significantly.
“It helps more from the fact when you’re out of position,” he said. “Like not really in the fairways I don’t think it’s going to change anything. I don’t think it’s the end solution to changing our pace of play from if you had five hours and 20 minutes to four-and-a-half hours, right? It’s not going to shave 45 minutes off our time for pace of play.”
As somebody who uses AimPoint, he was quick to defend the putt-reading style when it was put to him that Lucas Glover – who uses a long putter – had suggested that AimPoint should be banned.
“Yeah, it’s — yeah, I have nothing against Lucas, but if we’re banning AimPoint I think we should ban long putters as well,” he joked. “I don’t know. I guess no one has said it, right?
“Look, AimPoint does take longer if you’re not doing it properly, right, if you’re not doing it when other players are reading their putts. I think there’s a respect issue. I think some players might get a little bit too close to the hole and I get that. When you get too close to the hole when someone else is putting, yeah, like I don’t want my line and my putt to go over someone else’s foot and their marks.”
He continued: “I don’t think people understand how AimPoint works to really say this is right or wrong. Does it slow down play? I think there are some players that maybe do it in the wrong spots. And sometimes, look, I’ll admit it, maybe I can’t get in when I want to so it adds a couple more seconds. But I know that and I’m aware of that. I think players need to be aware if they’re slow or not, right? Like let people know who is slow and do something about it, right?”
Morikawa feels that the only way for the PGA Tour to really tackle slow play, and to highlight the specific players who are causing the problem, is by issuing fines and shot penalties and publishing the data.
“It would all hurt. I don’t want to lose any of it,” he said when asked if financial penalties or loss of FedEx Cup points would hurt more. “I mean, whatever the amount is, like I don’t think any of the guys want to be losing it. And FedExCup points, I don’t think you want to be losing that either.
“I’m all for it [data being published on which payers were slowest], I think it would be great. And shoot, even if it was — even if we only did get it in the Tour, someone’s bound to find it, right? Things leak.
“Yeah, how would it affect the Tour? I mean, some guys I’m sure would hear it out on the golf course. Make our game more exciting, you know?”
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