Collin Morikawa shot a bogey-free, 4-under 66 on Sunday, cruising to victory at the British Open at Royal St. George’s in Sandwich, England, racking up a four-day total of 15-under 265. The win was historic for Morikawa, as he becomes the first player in history to win two different majors (2020 U.S. Open) on his first attempt.
Morikawa held off a late-afternoon surge by Jordan Spieth, finishing two strokes in front with 32,000 fans in attendance, the biggest crowd since golf returned to allowing spectators coming off the coronavirus outbreak. The two major wins for Morikawa, in only eight career starts, is the best start to t a career in the sport’s four biggest tournaments since Bobby Jones in 1926. Only Gene Sarazen, Jones, Jack Nicklaus, Seve Ballesteros, Tiger Woods, Rory McElroy and Spieth have won multiple major championships before turning 25.
Morikawa began Sunday’s final round in second place, one stroke behind veteran Louis Oosthuizen. With Oosthuizen struggling early, Morikawa surged to the lead for good with birdies on the 7th, 8th, and 9th greens. Two scrambles to save par, at 10 and 15, allowed the lead to remain, with Spieth unable to close, shooting pars on the final four holes on the course.
Photo credit – Wikimedia Commons / Sandwich, England
