“One of the courses where you literally take your medicine” - Collin Morikawa salvages double bogey disaster during US Open Day 1
Collin Morikawa has just finished his first round at the 2024 US Open, but it has already been a rollercoaster ride. Morikawa finished his first day with a score of par 70, a valiant effort on the tough Pinehurst Course #2.
Morikawa scored a double bogey on the 9th and the 15th holes as well as a bogey on the 4th hole. However, he also scored 5 birdies during his round and was able to avert disaster.
After his round, Collin Morikawa spoke about how difficult it was to navigate the course. He said (via SB Nation):
"This is one of the courses where you literally take your medicine, and if you have eight feet for par, you have eight feet for par."
The American golfer was pleased with the score that he finished with at the end of the day:
"Hit two poor shots and one bad bunker shot. It wasn’t that bad on 9. A pretty bad putt for my par putt on 15. But other than that, I felt like I played pretty good. Very, very happy I got out with even par after today."
Morikawa made his last birdie from a distance of 31 feet.
Collin Morikawa confident about US Open Day 2 after making two consecutive birdies
Out of his five birdies, Collin Morikawa made two consecutively on the last two holes of the round. These back-to-back birdies have boosted his confidence heading into Day 2 of the tournament.
"Now I’m not as worried. I know it’s going to be tough. I know you’re going to make bogeys. I knew every hole out here is so tough that if I let it affect me, you might as well call it over and walk it on in. I felt like where the game is at, I still could climb back," he said (via SB Nation).
Collin Morikawa is in search of his third Major. He won the PGA Championship in 2020 and the Open in 2021. In the 2024 season, Morikawa has finished T4 at the PGA Championship, fourth at the Charles Schwab Challenge and second at the Memorial tournament, all in a run-up to the US Open.
It has been three years since Morikawa won an event on the international stage. He hopes to carry forward his momentum to pick up his first win of the season at the US Open.