Sky’s the limit for Collin Morikawa with Open Championship title

Collin Morikawa becomes a two-time major champion at the age of 24, but he’s far from done winning golf’s biggest events

Collin Morikawa had never played the Open Championship before this week, had never been in the final group on Sunday in a major championship, had never experienced the pressure-packed environment that comes with that. With how he picked apart Royal St George’s on his way to lifting the Claret Jug, it certainly didn’t look that way.

Morikawa is just 24 years old and turned pro only two years ago, but he’s already establishing himself as an era-defining player. Just as Tiger Woods dominated the last generation, this generation is shaping up to be Morikawa’s time, when not even the game’s best can compete with his rock-solid iron play and steady composure.

His Open Championship title he won on Sunday, beating another young prodigy in Jordan Spieth by two shots, adds to his allure. He’s now won two major championships, adding the Claret Jug to the Wanamaker Trophy he won last August. Woods didn’t win his second major until his 12th start as a pro; it took Rory McIlroy 16 starts to get his second, Dustin Johnson 43. This was Morikawa’s eighth major, the fewest in the modern era before becoming a multiple-time champion.

The list of milestones Morikawa reached this week is a long one: he joins Woods as the only players to win the Open Championship and PGA before turning 25; he’s the first ever to win two different majors in his first attempt. He’s the sixth active golfer under the age of 40 with multiple majors and the youngest of that group by four years.

It’s a lot to take in for a player two years removed from being in college. “When you make history—and I’m 24 years old—it’s hard to grasp. It’s hard to really take it in,” he said at his post-victory press conference, the 20-inch tall sterling silver Claret Jug resting on the table next to him.

“At 24, it’s so hard to look back at the short two years that I’ve been a pro and see what I’ve done. Because I want more. I enjoy these moments. I love it. I just want more. When you’re in these moments and you truly love what you do, which I love playing golf and competing against these guys, these are the best moments ever because the nerves push you to just be a better person.”

Morikawa has the chance to be most prolific champion of this era

What more can Morikawa accomplish? He’s already the best iron player on tour, leading in Strokes Gained: Approach by such a wide margin that the difference between first and second is greater than between second and 50th. In the ShotLink era, only one other player had a better season with his irons than Morikawa in 2021: Woods.

Morikawa deserves comparisons to his idol for how he’s begun his career proving he has the ability to lap the rest of the field. He has the same nerves and ability to play under pressure; Morikawa didn’t make a bogey over his final 31 holes at Royal St George’s while playing near the lead on a style of golf course he had never played before last week. His learning curve is quick. Morikawa appears to have mastered the intricacies of links golf in just a matter of days. He even changed his putting stroke for this tournament and led the field in Strokes Gained: Putting.

There are many pitfalls in the career of a professional golfer. McIlroy looked like he was going to reach 10 majors after winning four in just three years; he hasn’t won one in seven years. Spieth won three legs of the grand slam before turning 24 but hasn’t won another since. Morikawa, though, is different. His swing is impervious to pressure. He doesn’t make mistakes, and, the rare times he finds himself in a bad spot, he showed on Sunday he can get out of it.

He probably won’t win as many majors as Woods has. The fields today are simply too deep for another player to replicate the run Woods went on.

But, for anyone watching how Morikawa played on Sunday, separating from the pack and staying there, always playing the accurate, smart shot, one thing is for sure: he won’t be stuck on two majors for very long. He wants more, and there are plenty of majors left in that smooth swing of his.