Collin Morikawa Says Tiger Woods Still Has The Game But 'Ego' Won't Allow Him To Use A Golf Cart
Collin Morikawa says Tiger Woods' ego is stopping him from using a golf cart to make his life easier - with his game still in good shape
After spending time with his big hero at a recent event, Collin Morikawa confirmed Tiger Woods can still play all the shots, but again repeated the theory that his pride and ego is preventing him from making his life easier and using a golf cart.
Woods is trying to play all four Majors this year, and although he's shown at times that his game can still measure up, the usually simple act of just walking around a golf course in tournament conditions is proving the real issue.
Hitting high cuts, slingy draws and trademark stingers on a flat driving range is no problem, and just his golfing brain would likely see Woods still mix it with the very best on the PGA Tour - but his body just can't keep up.
He's been offered the chance to use a golf cart, and there's not one pro in the game that would begrudge him a set of wheels even in a Major, given what he's done for the game over the years.
There's one person who doesn't want to see the 15-time Major champion use a golf cart though - and that's the man himself, who likely sees it as admitting some sort of defeat.
"His ego's pretty big, you know, as is all of ours," Morikawa said at The Memorial about Woods using a golf cart.
"I just think he wants to keep doing it until he can't, and maybe there's something about a golf cart that's just, you know, ain't it. I would be taking a golf cart if they allowed me. I would love to."
Get the top Black Friday deals right in your inbox: Sign up now!
The hottest deals and product recommendations during deals season straight to your inbox plus all the best game-changing tips, in-depth features and the latest news and insights around the game.
Woods is the ultimate competitor, and still gives out plenty of trash talk to the young guns on the PGA Tour when they're paired together with the 82-time winner, but it's that competitive spirit that's preventing him from making it easier to actually go out and compete again.
It's even more of a shame given that the 48-year-old, despite all the injuries and all the surgeries, still has a lot of his old game - as Morikawa witnessed at the recent Tiger Jam event in Las Vegas.
"I mean, he was making fun of me not being able to hit a draw, so I hit a draw, it was like a five-yard draw," Morikawa said of Woods. "And then he hit a hook and I swear he was aiming like three feet from the line of people that were on the right side."
Two-time Major champion Morikawa says that watching Woods on the range you wouldn't know just what he's been through, but, again, it's the mere act of getting around the golf course throughout a Major championship week that's proving just beyond him right now.
"The skill and the feel is still all there, right? So you wouldn't know. But you add that over time, over 18 holes, over a course of 72 holes, the entire week of prep, look, the guy's been through a lot.
"I'm very lucky to have that opportunity to go and do something like that, to talk to him, to hang out, because you go back and you look at your 15-year-old self, your 10-year-old self and you say, yeah, you're going to go spend a few hours with Tiger playing poker, hitting golf balls on the range, picking his brain, screwing around, like, that's - you know, that's a dream, right? So that's pretty cool."
Paul Higham is a sports journalist with over 20 years of experience in covering most major sporting events for both Sky Sports and BBC Sport. He is currently freelance and covers the golf majors on the BBC Sport website. Highlights over the years include covering that epic Monday finish in the Ryder Cup at Celtic Manor and watching Rory McIlroy produce one of the most dominant Major wins at the 2011 US Open at Congressional. He also writes betting previews and still feels strangely proud of backing Danny Willett when he won the Masters in 2016 - Willett also praised his putting stroke during a media event before the Open at Hoylake. Favourite interviews he's conducted have been with McIlroy, Paul McGinley, Thomas Bjorn, Rickie Fowler and the enigma that is Victor Dubuisson. A big fan of watching any golf from any tour, sadly he spends more time writing about golf than playing these days with two young children, and as a big fair weather golfer claims playing in shorts is worth at least five shots. Being from Liverpool he loves the likes of Hoylake, Birkdale and the stretch of tracks along England's Golf Coast, but would say his favourite courses played are Kingsbarns and Portrush.
-
Graham DeLaet Facts: 20 Things To Know About The PGA Tour Pro Turned Broadcaster
Graham DeLaet had a successful career in the game, but after injuries took a toll, he has stepped into a broadcasting role in recent years - here are 20 facts about him
By Mike Hall Published
-
Arron Oberholser Facts: 15 Things To Know About The PGA Tour-Winning Golf Channel Broadcaster
Arron Oberholser left his PGA Tour career behind to take up life as a Golf Channel broadcaster in 2013 – here are 15 things to know about him
By Mike Hall Published
-
Tiger and Charlie Woods Absent From Early PNC Championship Field
Tiger and Charlie Woods are absent from the field for the 2024 PNC Championship, although there are two teams to be confirmed
By Mike Hall Published
-
Tiger Woods Watches As Son Charlie Hits Five Birdies In Final Round Of State Championship Event
The 15-year-old was in fine form in the final round of the event at Mission Resort, but it wasn’t quite enough to help the Benjamin School boys golf team retain its title
By Mike Hall Published
-
Tiger Woods Hints At New Golf Shoe Launch Shortly Before Possible Hero World Challenge Start
The 15-time Major winner's Sun Day Red brand has dropped a new teaser trailer ahead of launching its first golf shoe later this year
By Jonny Leighfield Published
-
Tiger Woods and Elin Nordegren On Site As Charlie Woods' School Earns Chance To Defend State Title
Charlie Woods and his The Benjamin School teammates did enough to progress in the Class 1A Region 4 tournament at Miami Shores Country Club on Monday
By Jonny Leighfield Published
-
'Wasn't Pretty But Got The Job Done' - Charlie Woods Helps High-School Team Win First Postseason Event
The Benjamin School won the District 13-1A championship by two strokes after Woods came sixth in the individual competition
By Jonny Leighfield Published
-
We Spoke To A Leading Back Surgeon About Tiger Woods' Chances Of Returning In 2024. Here Is What He Said...
Woods underwent the sixth back surgery of his career in September, and a top back surgeon in London has outlined the likely timeframe for a full recovery
By Jonny Leighfield Published
-
Nico Echavarria Beats Tiger Woods Scoring Record On Way To Winning Zozo Championship
The Colombian held off the challenge of Justin Thomas and Max Greyserman via a sublime run of scoring in Japan to land his second PGA Tour title
By Jonny Leighfield Published
-
Tiger Woods Not In Hero World Challenge Field As 17 Names Announced
The annual event is set to include five of the world's top-10 but has three spaces left to fill before December - including a possible place for host, Woods...
By Jonny Leighfield Published