Collin Morikawa is feeling relaxed — if not exactly well-rested — as he competes at the RBC Canadian Open following a four-week absence from the PGA Tour.
Morikawa, 29, has not played since a T55 finish at the PGA Championship while dealing with a nagging back injury and also becoming a first-time father.
“Just a different perspective on life, I think. I’m just enjoying every day. I can stare at a camera, I can stare at my little one just non-stop and kind of forget about what else is going on,” the World No. 10 told reporters Wednesday at TPC Toronto at Osprey Valley in Caledon, Ontario.
“I know at the same time I still have a job to do when I’m out here and that’s what’s great kind of being back. But at the same time when I’m out there playing you’re kind of playing a little bit differently, your mind’s in a different spot. I think I’m a lot more positive out there and hopefully I can kind of just allow my body to relax and go out and play golf and enjoy it again.”
Morikawa has received “new dad” tips from many of his friends on the PGA Tour but said the “sleep thing” still got to him and his wife, Katherine Zhu.
“That’s a real thing,” he said. “So, I won’t push it on my wife that I’m getting some great sleep out here. But your body gets used to taking 50-minute naps and learning how to run off that.”
Morikawa won the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am in February and has four other top-10 finishes this season, including a T7 at the Masters.
The two-time major winner’s back injury first flared up during a practice swing at The Players Championship in March, which forced him to withdraw.
“I left the PGA Championship uncomfortable in a way,” he said. “I’ve been grinding this kind of back injury since The Players. It still hadn’t felt that comfortable. So it was nice to take a full reset. And just focus on other things going on in life. I think after that I’ve just been able to relax a little bit more.
“There’s still a trust factor that I’m looking for that I’m trying to find this week, I think, going into tomorrow and into next week (the U.S. Open) essentially. But it’s a lot better of a swing than I’ve been putting on and that’s for me a positive thing.
“I think when the body fully is able to kind of have that last little puzzle piece of fully relaxing, I think the game’s going to be exactly how I want. I still feel like I’m hit great shots when I need to. But just the consistency-wise I think if I can build that into this week it will be a great boost into next week.”
Morikawa is competing in the RBC Canadian Open for the first time since making his professional debut at the event in 2019, when he tied for 14th.
