Reigning DP World Tour Number One Collin Morikawa says his previous experiences at the Masters Tournament have encouraged him to adopt a change in strategy as he bids for further Major Championship success.
The American, 25, finished 18th at Augusta National Golf Club last year after he placed joint 44th on his debut in the Autumnal 2020 edition.
Two-time major winner Morikawa, playing in his third season as a professional, will revert to his usual left-to-right shot shape for this week’s 86th Masters, rather than try to draw the ball.
“I think the biggest thing is I need to play my game,” said Morikawa during his pre-tournament news conference on Monday.
“You hear how much you need to hit draws and you have to hit it high and you have to do certain things, but that's what I did wrong the past two years.”
Morikawa, who has six top-ten finishes in seven PGA TOUR events during the 2021-22 season, is confident a clearer outlook in how to tackle Augusta will reap rewards.
“This year was a little different,” he added. “I just made sure everything was finely tuned and I’ll go out there and figure out how to play the course to my strengths.”
Morikawa, ranked third in the Official World Golf Ranking, added the Open Championship last summer to his 2020 PGA Championship victory, becoming the first golfer in history to win two different Majors on his first attempt.
Asked to describe the attributes of his game, he replied: “In a small package, it's just really hitting cuts and hitting fairways.
“That's as simple as it gets. Those are my strengths. Irons are my strength. How do I stick to that? … When you're over a shot and you want to hit a fairway, and I can play it to my strength, why not?”
Morikawa capped a stellar 2021 with victory at the DP World Tour Championship in Dubai to become the first American to top the season-long DP World Tour Rankings.
The success he has enjoyed has only increased his high standards, but Morikawa, who could become World Number One for the first time this week, remains determined to learn more about his game.
“The standards have gone up and the standards sometimes are a little too high and they end up hurting me rather than helping me when you're out on the golf course,” he continued.
“But the biggest thing for me is just keep getting better. Like how do I keep figuring things out, learning small little things.”
