“Man up!” – Fellow pro blasts “pathetic” Collin Morikawa

Rocco Mediate has launched a scathing attack on Collin Morikawa for the way he handled his Arnold Palmer Invitational collapse on Sunday.

Morikawa was overtaken down the stretch at Bay Hill by Russell Henley, letting slip a gilt-edged chance to end an 18-month winless streak on the PGA Tour.

Afterwards, he declined all media requests, leaving scribes – and his fans – left to decide for themselves where it all went wrong for the 28-year-old at Arnie’s place.

Asked about that ahead of this week’s PLAYERS Championship, Morikawa explained that he was “just heated, just pissed.”

“Like, I don’t owe anyone anything,” he added. “No offense to you guys, but for me in the moment of that time, I didn’t want to be around anyone. I didn’t want to talk to anyone. I didn’t need any sorries. I didn’t need any ‘good playings.’ Like, you’re just pissed.”

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None of the above has gone down well with Mediate.

Speaking on his SiriusXM PGA Tour Radio show, and as first reported by Golf Digest, the 62-year-old pulled no punches in a withering assessment of Morikawa’s behaviour, and his explanation for it..

“Biggest bunch of horseshit you could ever say, period. I mean, that is the dumbest, most selfish garbage you could ever say,” said six-time PGA Tour winner Mediate.

“Mr Palmer would’ve hunted him down. Trust me on that one because Mr Palmer told me one thing that stuck with me. [He said] ‘You know what, Rock, it’s real easy to go in and talk to somebody when you won or when you’ve played well, but can you do it when you don’t? That’s the key.’ Obviously he can’t,

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“‘I didn’t wanna talk to anybody.’ Your job is to tell people what happened. I don’t give a s**t about your workout in the morning and all that other crap. Tell me what happened. You lost? You lost. You got beat? That’s what happens. Guess what? Golf’s hard.

Ouch – but he wasn’t done yet.

“Please stop trying to tell me, ‘I didn’t feel like talking to somebody.’ I mean, if Mr Palmer was there, I’m telling you, it wouldn’t have been pretty, it would’ve been public, too.

“You don’t need to act that way. The tour does not need that garbage at all. Man up, talk about it and be done. He said, ‘I don’t owe anybody anything.’ Actually, he does. The people that are watching. The reporters that bust their ass to write stories about our sorry asses. And I get this s**t? No, pathetic.

“Come to me, Collin. We’ll talk about it.”

Michael McEwan is bunkered's Head of Content and has been part of the team since 2004. In that time, he has interviewed almost every major figure within the sport, from Jack Nicklaus, to Rory McIlroy, to Donald Trump. The host of the multi award-winning bunkered Podcast and a member of Balfron Golfing Society, Michael is the author of three books and is the 2023 PPA Scotland 'Writer of the Year' and 'Columnist of the Year'. Dislikes white belts, yellow balls and iron headcovers. Likes being drawn out of the media ballot to play Augusta National.

Head of Content