Collin Morikawa's Effort at the Masters Pushes Him Back to No. 2 in the World Rankings
Collin Morikawa’s return to form and a fifth-place finish at the Masters has elevated the 25-year-old Cal grad back to the No. 2 spot in the official world golf rankings.
Scottie Scheffler, whose victory at Augusta National was his fourth victory in six events since mid-February, solidified his spot atop the rankings with an average points score of 10.06.
Morikawa is second at 7.98, moving past Jon Rahm at 7.83. Rahm, who held the No. 1 spot until Scheffler took it, finished tied for 27th at the Masters.
But according to the Caesars sportsbook, Rahm — not Scheffler — is the favorite to win the next golf major, the PGA Championship, May 19-22 at Southern Hills Country Club in Tulsa, Oklahoma.
Rahm opened as the favorite at 11-1, with Scheffler and Rory McElroy next at 12-1. Morikawa and Justin Thomas are listed at 14-1. Tiger Woods opened at 40-1, according to Caesars, although other sports books rated him 80-1.
FanDuel on Vegas Insider has Rahm atop the odds at 10-1 with Morikawa second at 12-1. Scheffler is listed at just 18-1, according to those odds.
DraftKings agrees with Rahm as the favorite at 11-1, shows Thomas, Scheffler and McIlroy all at 12-1 and Morikawa at 14-1.
Morikawa started the 2021-22 season strong, with five straight top-10 performances through a runner-up finish at the Genesis Invitational in February. But he missed the cut at the Players Championship, finished in a tie for 68th at Valspar and lost decisively in match play in the round of 16 at the World Golf Championships.
Collin Morikawa chips out of the sand on the 18th hole.
Photo by Adam Cairns, Augusta Chronicle/USA Today
Morikawa hung around through three rounds at the Masters then put together a final-round 67 that briefly pulled him as high as third place. He and McIlroy were paired Sunday and they finished in spectacular fashion, holing shots from the sand for birdies on the 18th. McIlroy nailed his shot from 26 yards, Morikawa from 18 yards, each prompting a wild reaction from the gallery.
"What you just saw on the last hole with me and Rory, that was the coolest thing in the world," Morikawa said.
McIlroy, whose 64 tied the lowest final-round score in Masters history, wound up in second place.
"That's as happy as I've ever been on a golf course right there," McIlroy said. "Just having a chance, and then with Collin, we both played so well all day, and for both of us to finish like this, I was just so happy for him, too.
"That was an incredible — I've never heard roars like on the 18th green. It was really cool."
Morikawa’s track record in the majors should have suggested he would be ready for the Masters.
He has two victories in the majors, of course, having won the PGA Championship in 2020 and the British Open last year.
Beyond that, Morikawa has finished among the top 20 in his past five majors, and in the top 10 of the past four.
Morikawa's career record in nine majors:
2022 Masters: 5th
2021 British Open: 1st
2021 U.S. Open: tied 4th
2021 PGA: tied 8th
2021 Masters: tied 18th
2020 Masters: tied 44th
2020 U.S. Open: missed cut
2020 PGA: 1st
2019 U.S. Open: tied 35th
.
Cover photo of Collin Morikawa embracing Rory McElroy by Adam Cairns, Augusta Chronicle/USA Today
Follow Jeff Faraudo of Cal Sports Report on Twitter: @jefffaraudo