PEBBLE BEACH, Calif. (AP) — Collin Morikawa had gone 28 months since his last win, and he was reminded Sunday at the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-am why it's never easy.
He was among six players who had a share of the lead at one point in a wild and windy final round, one name getting everyone's attention — Scottie Scheffler — who nearly pulled off the biggest comeback in the tournament's history.
Tougher still was standing in the fairway on the par-5 18th, the cold Pacific air ripping off the ocean to his left, and having to wait some 20 minutes as Jacob Bridgeman had to figure out how to play off the beach only for his shot to go into the ocean.
He said he walked down to the ocean and back about 10 times.
“I tried to think about anything else other than golf,” Morikawa said. “Thankfully, you had the nicest backdrop you could ask for so that was very, very easy. For me, it was how do I stay loose, how do I stay warm and not just think about the shot.”
Morikawa delivered the goods when they mattered, back-to-back birdies to take the lead, and one last birdie with a 4-iron from 235 yards he had to start out over the ocean wall and let the wind bring it back to the green.
Two putts from the collar gave him a 5-under 67 and a one-shot victory over Sepp Straka and Min Woo Lee.
“Great field, great leaderboard — looking at it the entire day,” Morikawa said. “And just to be able to pull of those last two shots, it feels great.”
The two-time major champion finished at 22-under 266. He had gone 45 starts since he last won the Zozo Championship in Japan in October 2023.
He can only hope for bigger things with a new outlook on golf — play the game for the joy, not the technique — and in life. Morikawa took the occasion of such a big win to announce he and his wife are expecting their first child this spring.
"There’s so much to life, there’s so much to enjoy," he said.
Scheffler began the final day eight shots behind and was 7 under through seven holes before the wind began whipping. He had three eagles in his round of 63, the last one a 6-iron to 30 inches on the final hole that allowed him to tie Morikawa for the lead.
“I was very aware of Scottie Scheffler’s score today. I mean, what a player,” Morikawa said.
Scheffler didn't think it would be enough, and it wasn't.
Moments later, Morikawa holed a 30-foot birdie putt on the 15th to take the lead. He followed with a 6-iron into 8 feet for another birdie. But a bogey on the par-3 17th — his tee shot was dangerously close to the ocean left of the green — and Lee finishing birdie-birdie for a 65, created another tie.
For all the drama, it was particularly tense on the par-5 18th as Morikawa waited. And waited. It was 20 minutes from hitting his tee shot to hitting his 4-iron, a wait made longer considering what was at stake.
“I was able to pull off a great 4-iron,” he said. "And man, I need a drink.”
Akshay Bhatia, the 54-hole leader by two shots, made only two birdies over his last 29 holes. He fell out of the lead after four holes and never caught up, closing with a 72 to finish three back.
Scheffler was 10 shots behind after the first day when he shot 72. He was 13 shots back at one point on Friday. He still managed to be a major threat. He wound up in a tie for fourth with Tommy Fleetwood (66), extending his streak to 18 PGA Tour starts in the top 10.
“I had to do something special to give myself a chance,” Scheffler said. “The back nine, I felt like I had to get to 21 or 22 (under). I played a bit more aggressive than I normally am. It was a fun day overall. These are the weeks I'm proud of. I felt like I was battling to give myself a chance.”
Among his regrets was a wedge to a back pin on the 15th that was a foot away from spinning back to close range. It hopped hard over the green. He chipped to 6 feet and missed the par putt.
Morikawa charged his way into the mix with a 62 on Saturday to get within two shots of Bhatia, and he did enough right to stay close — six players had a share of the lead at some point during the final round — until delivering the goods at the end.
The Cal alum won for the seventh time on the PGA Tour since turning pro a week before the 2019 U.S. Open at Pebble Beach. Winning at Pebble moves him to No. 5 in the world.
___
AP golf: https://apnews.com/hub/golf