Collin Morikawa’s 2 surprising changes have him close to finding himself

Collin Morikawa has been searching: Searching for a new caddie, for the right putter, for an old swing feel, for his first win since the fall of 2023.

The world No. 5 arrived at the 2025 Rocket Classic at Detroit Golf Club with a fill-in caddie after parting ways with Joe Greiner, whom he had hired in May after parting ways with long-time caddie J.J. Jakovac. Early in the week, Morikawa tested out several different putters after losing over 10 strokes putting at the U.S. Open and Travelers Championship. Last week at TPC River Highlands, Morikawa hit some of his shots without a glove as he looked for the right feel with his hands.

All of that led Morikawa to a first-round three-under-par 69, where he lost over four shots on the green and said he “putted like a blind man.” Seven shots off the first-round lead at a course that surrenders a ton of birdies, it appeared that Detroit would not yield the answers that Morikawa requires to break back into the winner’s circle.

But Morikawa made a mid-tournament putter change on Friday and picked up three strokes on the greens while firing an eight-under 64. He also picked up almost two shots on approach as he vaulted into contention.

Morikawa backed up that performance with a four-under round on Saturday, where he picked up two-and-a-half shots on approach and was positive on the greens.

The two-time major winner will have to go low Sunday to snap his drought — he sits four shots back of 54-hole leader Aldrich Potgieter — but two things have spurred a resurgence that bode well for the rest of the season: a putter change and acceptance.

“I’ve been asking TaylorMade, it actually was a project to build over the fall and they were able to come through, and kind of early in the season when I had it, every time I was going to try and use it and put it in, the week before leading up the blade felt really good so I haven’t had that big of a shot to put it in,” Morikawa said Saturday of his new putter.

That new putter is a one-of-one TaylorMade remake of a putter that Morikawa used during his college days at Cal. It’s a mallet-style putter with a plumber’s neck and Diamana shaft. The remake that matches the specs of Morikawa’s old putter with higher MOI and the latest TaylorMade tech insert.

“Collin switched into a prototype putter made for him in the TaylorMade Putter Lab at HQ back in April,” TaylorMade Tour rep James Holley told Golf.com. “This prototype was inspired by Collin and his desire to test a head that was similar to the ones he played in college. We made a head with a new sole geometry to work with his setup. It is 2 parts, steel body/hosel and an aluminum sole plate. The sole plate can be milled to different (body loft) angles to match his slight forward press set up.”

Morikawa switched to the TaylorMade Spider V Tour mallet putter after the Masters this year, but only used that putter for two tournaments before going back to a blade putter. He put in a new Logan Olson 1.0 Round with a milled face last week at the Travelers, but now has gone to the one-of-one putter he requested TaylorMade craft in the offseason.

The new flatstick has been a welcome sight, but the more important development has come in Morikawa’s iron play.

After losing over three shots on approach last week in Connecticut, Morikawa ranks first in Strokes Gained: Approach this week. He is doing so by not forcing himself to try and hit his normal cut, but by accepting the shot he currently has in his control and riding with that.

“I’m playing a slightly different shot than I would ideally like, but there comes a point where I just have to stop fighting it and I just have to go out and play golf,” Morikawa said Saturday. “It’s frustrating because some of the shots that I will have, I know what I can do, but they’re just not performing that way. So I have to kind of cater to the shots I have, which is a straight ball to a two-yard draw to a two-yard fade. It’s very tight dispersions, which I don’t mind. I have to think a little bit differently about how I approach them.”

Morikawa will try to get the timing of his swing synced up so he can eventually go back to the normally reliable cut. But for now, he won’t try to force it. He will play the shots he has and hope that is good enough on Sunday to track down Potgieter.

“If I can put together what I’ve seen over the last three days, hopefully I can make that special day happen,” Morikawa said. “Look, I know what’s at stake, I want to find a way to get it done tomorrow.”

As for the long-term caddie, Morikawa will start the search after this week but knows it could take some more trial and error to find the right personality fit on his bag.

While Morikawa hasn’t won since the 2023 Zozo Championship, he has three top-10 finishes and two runner-ups this year. He has been close, but his game has dipped over the last few months. Since his T10 at the Players Championship, Morikawa hasn’t finished inside the top 12 of a tournament. That includes a T50 at the PGA Championship and a tie for 23rd at the U.S. Open.

But a week in Detroit might have helped Morikawa unlock what he’s looking for. Sometimes all it takes is acceptance and the willingness to make a change.