Cal Golf: Collin Morikawa, Max Homa Have Solid First Rounds at Masters
Former Cal star Collin Morikawa had a solid round on the first day of the Masters on Thursday, but that still left him eight strokes behind first-round leader Justin Rose, who had a spectacular opening round given the difficult conditions.
On a day in which only 12 golfers shot under par, the 24-year-old Morikawa fired a 1-over-par 73, leaving him tied with 10 other players for 20th place, but just four strokes out of second place. Max Homa, another former Golden Bears golfer, also put himself in decent position by finishing with a 2-over 74, which is tied for 31st.
But can anyone catch Rose?
Rose finished with a 7-under-par 65, giving him a four-stroke lead over Brian Harmon and Hideki Matsuyama, who are tied for second at 3-under. The four-shot lead is just one stroke off the record for the largest Masters lead after one round.
Gusty winds made the greens extremely fast at Augusta National Golf Course, especially in the afternoon when Rose, Morikawa and Homa played their rounds. Rose was 2-over after seven holes, but was a remarkable 9 under par over the next 10 holes to claim the sizable lead.
It’s the sixth time Rose was the leader or co-leader after one round at the Masters, but he has never won it.
Most of the other favorites stayed close.
Dustin Johnson, this year’s favorite and the 2020 Masters winner, scored a 2-over-par 74 in his opening round, which ended with a disastrous final hole. He missed a short putt that resulted in a double-bogey 6 on the 18th hole.
Jordan Spieth shot a 1-under 71 despite having a triple-bogey in his round. Jon Rahm had an even-par 72, and Justin Thomas finished with a 1-over 73. But Bryson DeChambeau and Rory McIlroy have some work to do after both had rounds of 4-over-par 76.
The two ex-Cal golfers are in the running.
Morikawa, the No. 4-ranked golfer in the world, played in a group with Spieth and Cameron Smith. Morikama was 1-over after six holes, but got himself to even with the help of birdies at No. 8 and No. 14. But a bogey on the 17th hole pushed him back to 1-over.
The highlight of his round was a long putt to save par at No. 9. If it had not hit the back of the hole and popped in, it would rolled well past the hole, making a putt for bogey difficult.
Homa, ranked No. 37 in the world, was grouped with DeChambeau and Adam Scott. Homa was 3-over after 11 holes, but birdies on the 13th and 14th holes brought him back to 1-over before a bogey on the 16th hole put him at 2-over before he parred the final two holes.
Max Homa -- Photo by Rob Schumacher, USA TODAY Sports
Tommy Fleetwood had the shot of the day, a hole-in-one on the par-3 16th hole.
Cover photo of Collin Morikawa by Rob Schumacher, USA TODAY Sports