The Masters: Collin Morikawa Shares 13th Place, Max Homa Tied For 26th After Round 1

The two Cal grads will face tougher conditions Friday with rains in the forecast.

Collin Morikawa began play at the 87th Masters lifted by the confidence of being a two-time major winner. The 26-year-old Cal grad shot an opening-round 3-under 69 and is four strokes off the lead entering Friday’s second round.

“The biggest thing is really believing in yourself,” Morikawa told ESPN prior to starting play Thursday. “It’s just showing up to these majors knowing that you can do it.”

Morikawa owns victories at the 2020 PGA Championship and the 2021 (British) Open, which is also the last time he took home a victory.

“Looking back and being able to draw back on those two majors is the confidence I need, especially at this time where we haven’t been up on top for a while,” Morikawa said. “Hopefully we can change that.”

He sits in a tie for 13th place, alongside Jordan Spieth and Tony Finau.

Fellow Cal grad Max Homa, ranked a career-best No. 5 in the world but seeking his first major title, is farther back at 1-under 71 and tied for 26th place along with Patrick Cantlay, Dustin Johnson and Phil Mickelson.

Max Homa chips out of the sand
Max Homa chips out of a bunker on the second hole / Photo by Michael Madrid, USA Today

Scores were low at Augusta National on a warm, dry Thursday, with Brooks Koepka, Victor Hovland and John Rahm all entering the clubhouse after rounds of 7-under 65. Hovland was the early leader and finished a bogey-free round with five birdies and an eagle. Rahm rallied from making a double-bogey on No. 1 to card seven birdies and an eagle. Koepka made birdies on 17 and 18 to join the others atop the board.

Jason Day and Cameron Young shot 67s and seven golfers, including world No. 1 and defending champion Scottie Scheffler, are tied for sixth at 68.

“Most of the guys were going low today — this was the day to do it,” said Tiger Woods, who shot a 2-over 74 and sits in a tie for 54th place, the first time he finished outside the top-50 after the first round of the Masters since turning pro in 1997.

The weather is expected to change dramatically on Friday, with an 80-percent chance of rain. That will continue into the weekend, forecasters say.

As a result, tee times for the second round were moved up a half-hour. Morikawa will go off at 6:48 a.m. PT before Homa, paired with Scheffler, gets started at 7 a.m. PT.

Collin Morikawa is given a ball by caddie Jonathan Jakovac.
Caddie Jonathan Jakovac hands a golf ball to Collin Morikawa / Photo by Michael Madrid, USA Today

Morikawa, fifth at the Masters a year ago, had just one bogey all day. It came on the par-5 13th hole, which he said beforehand was altered and could be challenging.

With birdies on Nos. 2 and 7, he finished the front nine at 33. Then the world’s 12th-ranked player rallied from his bogey on 13 to log birdies on 15 and 16.

“It’s going to be a long week, especially with how the weather looks like to come,” Morikawa said beforehand. “It’s obviously nice to hopefully get off to a good start on Thursday.”

Which he did.

Homa, who has won twice each of the past two seasons, still is seeking his first strong outing in a major. In three previous Masters, he missed the cut twice before finishing in a tie for 48th last year.

He had bogeys on Nos. 4 and 8 and made the turn at 2-over 38. “Got a little sloppy with a bogey on 8,” Homa told ESPN while walking the course after scoring a birdie on No. 13. “My distance control hasn’t been great. Maybe one birdie will get me going.

“You still have to go shot for shot. If you get ahead of yourself it typically will punch you in the gut,” he said. “I have a goal for me just to sleep well tonight.”

Shortly after that Homa nailed an eagle-3 on the par-5 15th hole. He gave one stroke back with a bogey on 17 before finishing with a birdie on No. 18.

Cover photo of Collin Morikawa by Kyle Terada, USA Today

Follow Jeff Faraudo of Cal Sports Report on Twitter: @jefffaraudo


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Jeff Faraudo
JEFF FARAUDO

Jeff Faraudo was a sports writer for Bay Area daily newspapers since he was 17 years old, and was the Oakland Tribune's Cal beat writer for 24 years. He covered eight Final Fours, four NBA Finals and four Summer Olympics.