Collin Morikawa reveals physical challenges at the Augusta Masters.

Collin Morikawa returned to the Masters with an invisible – and devastating – weight on his shoulders. The golf prodigy, currently ranked 7th in the world, made his comeback at the legendary Augusta National after a dramatic month away due to a back injury that forced him to abruptly withdraw from the season at TPC Sawgrass. However, his return did not go as expected: with an opening round above par (+2) and sitting in 40th place, the young American talent revealed a much tougher battle than his score suggests.

“It was probably the hardest round I’ve ever played,” Morikawa admitted in statements after the first day. “I’m struggling. It’s a constant battle. I can’t feel comfortable or fully trust my body. It’s manageable, but challenging. What hurts the most is walking.”

The drama began six weeks ago when Morikawa suffered back spasms during a practice session at The PLAYERS Championship, which forced him to withdraw early in the first round. The recovery was long and painful, causing him to also miss the Valero Texas Open, with the injury preventing any competitive rhythm. Before the Masters, the prodigy went an entire month without picking up a club.

This is not a new problem for Collin Morikawa. In Tokyo 2021, during the Olympic Games, he experienced the same type of back injury, a lower muscle that was strained after a shot on heavy grass. He played nonetheless and finished in fourth place, but that episode was a precursor to what would happen again. In 2023, at the Memorial Tournament, he suffered spasms again during the pre-game warm-up, which forced him to withdraw from the competition when he was just two strokes off the lead – an opportunity for victory that slipped away.

Now, at the Masters, the scenario repeats itself, but with an added complication: “It’s not so much the back pain anymore, it’s my legs that don’t feel comfortable,” Morikawa revealed. “I don’t feel strong enough to support myself.” The 29-year-old star’s swing heavily relies on leg strength to generate power and rhythm, and the lack of that base has forced Morikawa to compensate with his torso, which is disrupting his entire movement that he has been perfecting over the years.

Three days before the competition, Morikawa had already made it clear how difficult the psychological battle was: “When we injure ourselves while swinging, it’s a completely different fight, because we don’t know what’s going to happen. There’s always a question of confidence that falters.” And that doubt translated into nervousness: “I’ve never felt so nervous in my life. I’ve played majors, but this time… When it happened at The PLAYERS, a huge doubt set in: could this happen again?”

Even so, Morikawa managed to maintain his composure and started with six consecutive pars, including two birdies and four bogeys. His consistency at Augusta is well recognized: four consecutive appearances in the top 15, with a third place in 2024, prove that he knows the course like few others. In fact, he arrived at the Masters with a good moment in the 2026 season, where he won the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am and accumulated several top-10 finishes in prestigious tournaments.

But the big question looming over the Masters now is whether the limited version of Collin Morikawa will be enough to recover 40 positions in the next three days and keep alive the hope for one of the greatest talents in modern golf.

Even before the young player took his first step on the tee, his performance was already dividing opinions in the world of golf. Brandel Chamblee, in a pre-tournament analysis, insisted that Morikawa remained among the favorites, citing his history at Augusta to justify the bet: “Looking at his record here is reason enough to consider Morikawa a serious contender.” On the other hand, Robby Kalland, a journalist for CBS, did not share the same optimism and referred to him as a “star who will not win,” highlighting the risk that an incompletely healed injury poses on a course that demands extreme precision.

Thursday’s round of 74 strokes did not fully validate either side but confirmed an undeniable fact: the Collin Morikawa we saw at the Masters is far from his best. Now, the question remains whether he can overcome the pain, regain his confidence, and rise to challenge the best until the end.

The future of this phenomenal young player at the Masters is uncertain – and all eyes will be on every shot. Will Morikawa be able to overcome adversity and prove that he is stronger than his own fragility? The answer will only come at the end of the tournament.

This article first appeared on Apito Final.