Why Collin Morikawa Could Not Be More Wrong

After storming off in a sulk following his US Open defeat in June 2024, I called out Rory McIlroy for failing to congratulate Bryson DeChambeau and refusing to speak to the world’s media. That was bad enough, but Collin Morikawa easily surpassed McIlroy’s strop with his performance in the immediate aftermath of losing the Arnold Palmer Invitational to Russell Henley.

Like McIlroy, he opted not to speak to the media - and was barely able to say "well done" to Henley. You would have thought that when he sat down for his pre-tournament press conference at the Players Championship that the American might have had time to reflect on his behaviour and perhaps even offer a few words of apology. Not a bit of it.

This was what Morikawa had to say: "Yeah, I was just heated. Just pissed. Like I don’t owe anyone anything. No offence to you guys [the media], but for me in the moment of that time, I didn’t want to be around anyone. Like, I didn’t want to talk to anyone. I didn’t need any sorries. I didn’t need any ‘good playings.’ Like, you’re just pissed."

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In my view, he could not have got it more wrong. If he really believes that he does not owe anybody anything then I would suggest that he is living in cloud cuckoo land. Players have a duty to speak to the media. 

I know that many of you may have a pretty low opinion of journalists but the men and women who follow professional golf for a living do so because they love the game. They are not looking for sensational stories - they are there to report on the drama that unfolds before their eyes. 

Many people cannot afford to pay for Sky Sports, while many others simply do not have the time (or understanding partners) to be able to spend hours in front of a TV screen watching golf tournaments, so they depend on the media to tell them what has happened.

There was more from Morikawa. He claimed that if the timings had been different then he may have acted differently, but the poor thing said he was feeling "drained" after a busy day that included a pre-round workout.

He said: "Honestly, if it was an hour later I would have talked to you guys, but an hour later I was on my way out to here [Sawgrass], because I didn’t want to be in Orlando anymore. I just felt like I put everything I did into the seven hours of my time being there, right, a few hours before showing up, physio, workout. Look, my entire routine, right. I was just drained.

"I get it. You guys are there to figure out how we played and how things went, but in my perspective, like I just didn’t want to talk to anyone, and I think that’s fair to myself, you know."

Morikawa is a 28-year-old athlete. Everybody else in the field would also have had some sort of workout and a rigorous session on the practice ground before tackling the final round at Bay Hill. And let’s not kid ourselves - had he won the tournament do you honestly think that he would have failed to attend the winners’ press conference because he was feeling "drained"? Absolutely not. 

I would hope that the PGA Tour would fine and reprimand Morikawa but, sadly, I know that is highly unlikely to happen.

Several of his peers have criticised him, but Rocco Mediate perhaps put it better than most.

Speaking on SiriusXM PGA Tour Radio, Mediate said: "That is the biggest bunch of horsesh*t you could ever say, period. I mean, that is the dumbest, most selfish garbage you could ever say.

"Arnold Palmer told me one thing that stuck with me. [He said,] ‘You know what, Roc, it’s real easy to go in and talk to somebody when you won or when you’ve played well, but can you do it when you don’t? That’s the key. 

"Your job is to tell people what happened. I don’t give a s**t about your workout in the morning and all that other crap. Tell me what happened. You lost? You lost. You got beat? That’s what happens. Guess what? Golf’s hard."

Mediate was also infuriated by Morikawa claiming that he has no responsibility to talk with the media after rounds. 

"He said, ‘I don’t owe anybody anything.’ Actually, he does. The people that are watching. The reporters that bust their ass to write stories about our sorry asses. And I get this s**t? No, it is pathetic. You can say it. You can put it all, I don’t care."

You may remember that Mediate lost the 2008 US Open at Torrey Pines in heartbreaking fashion. After 72 holes he was tied with Tiger Woods, After an 18-hole playoff they still could not be separated. But then, at the 91st hole, Woods finally shook him off to win. 

Did Mediate refuse to speak to the media after what must have been a crushing loss? Did he storm off? No, he did not. He warmly congratulated Woods, attended countless interviews and answered every question that was asked of him. And that is precisely what Morikawa should have done, He should be ashamed of himself.