In Hawaii, after the second round of the Sentry Tournament of Champions, an elevated tournament on the PGA Tour, with one round in 66 (-7) out of a total of 130 (64 66, -16) shots, Collin Morikawa remained alone in the lead to the ranking.
In Kapalua, in the county of Maui, the Californian precedes Scottie Scheffler, second in the world ranking, and John Michael Spaun (among the three leaders after the 18 opening holes), both 2/i with 132 (-14). At the Plantation Course (par 73) Jordan Spieth recovers seven positions and is now 4/o with 133 (-13).
As Jon Rahm backs away. The Spaniard, from 1/o to 6/o with a score of 135 (-11) strokes, failed to repeat the test offered in the opening round of the competition. One more bogey free ride for Morikawa. Eleventh in the world, Major champion, he made seven birdies.
Smiling Scheffler, author of nine birdies with two bogeys. If he were to finish within third position, the American would return to first place in the world rankings, overtaking Northern Irishman Rory MclIroy, who was absent for the occasion.
Instead, Xander Schauffele was forced to retire due to a back injury. Gold medal at the Tokyo Games, he won the Sentry Tournament of Champions in 2019.
Collin Morikawa, results
Born in Los Angeles to Debbie and Blaine Morikawa, respectively of Chinese and Japanese origin, Collin began playing golf at the age of 5 He studied at the University of California, Berkeley, where he played the sport from 2015 to 2019 before graduating in business administration.
He turns pro in 2019 by taking part in the Canadian Open, where he finishes in 14th place. In August 2020 he won the PGA Championship at his first attempt, then repeating his success in July 2021 with the victory of the British Open, again as a rookie.
This made him the first golfer in history to win two majors in his first game. The Californian also becomes the seventh golfer since 1900 to win the Open on debut – after Jock Hutchison (1921), Denny Shute (1933), Ben Hogan (1953), Tony Lema (1964), Tom Watson (1975) and Ben Curtis (2003) – as well as setting a new record for strokes on the Royal St.
George’s course with 265 (the previous record of 267, set in 1993, was by Greg Norman). In 2021 he participates in the Games of the XXXII Olympics in Tokyo finishing third after the scheduled fourth rounds, but on an equal footing with nine other golfers. In the playoffs, however, he was overtaken by Pan Cheng-tsung finishing in fourth place.
