LOS ANGELES — Though he didn’t get into specifics, Collin Morikawa confirmed that he was offered money to join the Saudi-backed golf league.
But for now, the No. 2-ranked golfer in the world said that any move away from the PGA Tour is still extremely premature.
“Right now, you look at the best players that I see and they’re all sticking with the PGA Tour, and that’s where I kind of stay and that’s where I belong,” Morikawa said. “I’m very happy to be here.”
Saudi rumors continue: ‘You’ll see some big names’
Morikawa is just the latest Tour golfer to address rumors, and distance himself, from the Saudi league.
On Monday, Bryson DeChambeau shot down talk that he was preparing to walk away from the Tour both because of his health — he’s not playing at the Genesis Invitational this week while recovering from wrist and hip injuries — and the proposed league. A recent report suggested that DeChambeau was offered more than $100 million just to join the league, though he’s denied that.
On Tuesday morning, fellow Tour pro Kramer Hickok said on the Stripe Show podcast that he believes 17 golfers have already “jumped over” to the Greg Norman-run venture. That league, still with no real public plans, could feature about a dozen events as early as June, he said.
“I mean, from what I’ve heard, the money’s very, very appealing,” Hickok said on the podcast. “You’re only gonna have 12-14 events. Those events are gonna have purses, you’re not going to have to deal with missing a cut anymore, there’s only going to be 40 players. And 10 of those 14 events will be in the States. Signing bonuses, huge, huge, huge purses, it’s going to be very appealing for some of these guys. … Yeah you’ll see some big names for sure.”
While Morikawa is still open to the idea of playing elsewhere, he said it’s still too difficult to jump ship now. With nobody else publicly committed and nothing established, there’s no reason for him to do anything yet.
“The only way I can start thinking about other Tours, other leagues, whatever you call it, I need concrete evidence,” Morikawa said. “I need to be able to see a sheet in front of me and know what’s out there, right? And as of now, for what I know, I don’t know what’s out there. All I’ve heard are rumors and that’s hard to do … I need details. I’m really specific about things, and from my end I couldn’t get what I needed.”
Morikawa has won five times on Tour, including twice last season at the World Golf Championships-Workday Championship and the British Open — which marked his second major championship win in as many years. He also won the DP World Tour Championship in Dubai last year for his first international win.
Morikawa has finished inside the top-10 in all three of his Tour starts already this season, most recently with a T5 finish at the Sentry Tournament of Champions in January. He finished T62 and then T18 in a pair of DP World Tour starts in Dubai since the stop in Hawaii, but he insisted Tuesday that those issues are now behind him headed into the Genesis Invitational — where he’s listed at +1800 to win, the fifth-best odds on BetMGM.
So for the foreseeable future, Morikawa will continue playing on Tour. Until there’s actual evidence of a new Tour or league that’s available to him, and other players have made a move, Morikawa won’t consider anything else.
“We’ve all heard rumors of this date in the future,” he said. “I’m ready for it. Why not, right? Like, we’ll call them out. What are they waiting for? I don’t know. … There still have been no names.
“Once again, we go back to evidence, right? Can we see concrete evidence of what’s going on? If we can, then people can make decisions. It’s an unknown thing, it’s a hidden thing. For me, it’s not enough.”
