During the third round of the World Wide Technology Championship at Mayakoba, there was plenty of action, including a pair of aces and another near one on a par 4. Last week’s winner made a big jump on the leaderboard. However, the name at the top remains the same as it was when play began Saturday.
Collin Morikawa, who admitted before the tournament he’s trying to find his form, had his second straight round in red figures, and the first putting coach of his career may be to thank.
Here are some takeaways from the third round at El Cameleon Golf Course at Mayakoba in Mexico.
After the first winless season of his career, Collin Morikawa has added a new member to his team.
After the first winless season of his career, Collin Morikawa has added a new member to his team for the first time ever: a putting coach. The two-time major champion began working with instructor Stephen Sweeney at this week’s World Wide Technology Championship at Mayakoba.
Morikawa’s agent, Andrew Kipper, and Sweeney both confirmed the move. Kipper also confirmed that the 25-year-old star has not previously worked with a putting teacher. Irish-born Sweeney is based in Jupiter, Florida. His roster of clients includes Shane Lowry, Aaron Wise, Sebastian Munoz, Joaquin Niemann, Carlos Ortiz and Mito Pereira.
Morikawa’s dissatisfaction with his putting has been evident this year as he changed putters multiple times, most recently at the Presidents Cup. His results have stalled since winning the DP World Tour Championship in Dubai last November. He lost a five-shot lead at the Hero World Challenge two weeks later and in 20 subsequent worldwide starts his best finish is a T-2 at the Genesis Invitational in February. He has recorded four top 10s since the Genesis, including at the Masters and U.S. Open, but no wins. He has fallen to No. 9 in the Official World Golf Ranking from a high of second in April.
Even while racking up PGA Tour and major wins, Morikawa’s putting statistics have remained unflattering. In three seasons since turning professional, he has ranked 128th, 178th and 131st in Strokes Gained: Putting. Through two events this season, he ranks 202nd, although the Zozo Championship did not collect detailed data. At last month’s CJ Cup, he finished the week ranked 77th in putting in a 78-man field.
While flying from the CJ Cup to a TaylorMade commercial shoot in Florida, Morikawa discussed his putting with Wise and texted Sweeney a few days later. The pair spoke at length last Sunday and met the next day.
“We talked Sunday to get a feel for direction then we worked into the darkness in Mayakoba on Monday,” Sweeney told Golfweek. “Tuesday we worked before and after his round and on Wednesday before his pro-am.” They worked mostly on speed control, which Morikawa feels has caused issues for him of late.
Collin Morikawa at the 2022 World Wide Technology Championship at Club de Golf El Camaleon in Playa del Carmen, Mexico. (Photo: Orlando Ramirez/Getty Images)
In Thursday’s opening round, Morikawa shot an even-par 71 and followed with a bogey-free 63 on Friday. The putting statistics compiled at the World Wide Technologies Championship are more rudimentary than Strokes Gained data, but Morikawa averaged 1.75 putts per green in regulation in the first round and 1.563 on day two. At the CJ Cup, he averaged 1.825 putts per green in regulation over four rounds.
“We are not numbers-driven right now because we don’t have clear stats. I don’t know how close he’s hitting the ball to the hole,” Sweeney said. “But he’s excited about the direction it’s moving in.”
Because Morikawa has not before had a coach focused on his putting, Sweeney said he has never built up any practice techniques. “He had no real structure around his putting. He was very feel-oriented,” Sweeney said. “And the feel he used to win the PGA was very different than what he used to win the Open. He would get hot with his putting and wouldn’t know why, and then wouldn’t know why he got cold.”
Another Sweeney client saw that change up close. Pereira faced Morikawa in a Presidents Cup singles match and later told Sweeney he was awestruck at how well his American opponent putted. The two were paired again in the final round of the CJ Cup, when the opposite was true. “Same putter, same grip, same guy,” Sweeney said with a laugh. “No idea why he putted so differently one day to the other.”
Sweeney said the goal is to create a baseline for Morikawa to fall back on when things aren’t going so well. “That’s something he has in his full swing. When he misses a shot left or right, he knows why. He doesn’t have that baseline with his putting,” the coach explained. That structure, he hopes, will help bring out what he insists is a better putter than Morikawa is given credit for.
“He is a good putter because he’s putted well on every type of grass,” Sweeney said, pointing to his strong performances on Bermuda and bent greens at differing speeds. “He has that ability to putt well on every surface, which very few guys do.”
Everything you need to know for the third round in Mexico.
For the fourth time in as many weeks, the PGA Tour is in a new country.
El Camaleon Golf Course at Mayakoba hosts the 2022 World Wide Technology Championship at Mayakoba in Riviera Maya, Mexico. The course is a par-71 layout measuring at 7,017 yards. Greg Norman was the architect, and Viktor Hovland is a two-time defending champion.
Russell Henley holds a three-shot lead after 36 holes. He sits at 16 under with Sam Ryder trailing behind at 13 under along with first-round leader Will Gordon.
From tee times to TV and streaming info, here’s what you need to know for the third round of the 2022 World Wide Technology Championship at Mayakoba. All times Eastern.
1st tee
Tee time
Players
7:15 a.m.
Dean Burmester, Ben Taylor
7:25 a.m.
Dylan Frittelli, Eric Cole
7:35 a.m.
Philip Knowles, MC Daffue
7:45 a.m.
Lee Hodges, Chris Kirk
7:55 a.m.
Sebastian Munoz, Aaron Wise
8:05 a.m.
Russell Knox, Lucas Glover
8:15 a.m.
Danny Lee, Ryan Moore
8:25 a.m.
Ben Griffin, Joseph Bramlett
8:35 a.m.
Nick Taylor, K.H. Lee
8:50 a.m.
Austin Eckroat, Austin Cook
9 a.m.
Nick Hardy, Carson Young
9:10 a.m.
Andrew Putnam, Henrik Norlander
9:20 a.m.
Billy Horschel, Jason Day
9:30 a.m.
Justin Suh, Rory Sabbatini
9:40 a.m.
Scottie Scheffler, Beau Hossler
9:50 a.m.
Charley Hoffman, Emiliano Grillo
10 a.m.
Hayden Buckley, David Lipsky
10:10 a.m.
Danny Willett, Thomas Detry
10:25 a.m.
Ryan Armour, Alex Noren
10:35 a.m.
Adam Hadwin, Justin Lower
10:45 a.m.
Robert Streb, Seamus Power
10:55 a.m.
Taylor Montgomery, Joel Dahmen
11:05 a.m.
Brendon Todd, J.J. Spaun
11:15 a.m.
Viktor Hovland, John Huh
11:25 a.m.
Francesco Molinari, Collin Morikawa
11:35 a.m.
Brandon Wu, Davis Riley
11:50 a.m.
Harris English, Troy Merritt
12 p.m.
Patrick Rodgers, Matthias Schwab
12:10 p.m.
Greyson Sigg, Scott Piercy
12:20 p.m.
Maverick McNealy, Matt Kuchar
12:30 p.m.
Harry Higgs, Martin Laird
12:40 p.m.
David Lingmerth, Brian Harman
12:50 p.m.
Will Gordon, Patton Kizzire
1 p.m.
Russell Henley, Sam Ryder
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“Henley’s a guy when he gets going he’s not scared to keep the pedal down and that’s what he’s doing this week.”
Shooting 8-under 63 at El Camaleon Golf Course is impressive, but to back it up and do it two days in a row that qualifies as golfing your ball.
Add in the fact that Russell Henley is the only player in the field that is bogey-free through 36 holes and well, let’s just say Henley is in the zone as he improved to 16-under 126 to lead by three strokes over Will Gordon and Sam Ryder at the World Wide Technology Championship at Mayakoba in Riviera Maya, Mexico.
“I felt great the last two days,” Henley said. “Mentally felt confident and believing in what I was doing. Hit a lot of fairways and had some nice par saves today that kept my round going. Obviously very happy with where I am.”
As he should. Henley, who last won in 2017, made birdie on three of his final four holes to pull ahead. Henley going low early is nothing knew for him. Since the start of the 2020-21 season, of the seven opening 36-hole scores of 126 or better on Tour, Henley has recorded three of them.
“He’s a guy when he gets going he’s not scared to keep the pedal down and that’s what he’s doing this week,” said Sirius XM PGA Tour Radio’s John Rollins.
Henley has hit 24 of 28 fairways on a course that demands accuracy off the tee and he’s taken advantage of preferred lies being implemented after more than an inch of rain on Wednesday.
“Just being in a good head space for those tee shots is a good start,” Henley said. “Things were going my way.”
That’s putting it mildly for the 33-year-old Henley who is bidding for his fourth PGA Tour title.
Everything you need to know for the second round in Mexico.
For the fourth time in as many weeks, the PGA Tour is in a new country.
El Camaleon Golf Course at Mayakoba hosts the 2022 World Wide Technology Championship at Mayakoba in Riviera Maya, Mexico. The course is a par-71 layout measuring at 7,017 yards. Greg Norman was the architect, and Viktor Hovland is a two-time defending champion.
Scottie Scheffler and Hovland both fired opening-round 6-under 65s, however, they are three shots back of Will Gordon. Gordon fired a 9-under 62 on Thursday and is looking to build upon his good start to the season. He has made the cut in all four starts.
From tee times to TV and streaming info, here’s what you need to know for the second round of the 2022 World Wide Technology Championship at Mayakoba. All times Eastern.
1st tee
Tee time
Players
7:55 a.m.
Adam Hadwin, Justin Lower, Matthias Schwab
8:06 a.m.
Ryan Palmer, Ryan Moore, Adam Svensson
8:17 a.m.
Russell Knox, Rory Sabbatini, Sam Ryder
8:28 a.m.
Lucas Glover, Andrew Landry, Matt Kuchar
8:39 a.m.
Chez Reavie, Erik van Rooyen, Jim Herman
8:50 a.m.
J.J. Spaun, Sepp Straka, Aaron Wise
9:01 a.m.
Danny Willett, Matt Wallace, Lee Hodges
9:12 a.m.
Nick Hardy, Harry Hall, Carson Young
9:23 a.m.
Erik Barnes, Philip Knowles, Isidro Benitez
9:34 a.m.
Austin Eckroat, Sam Stevens, Brad Adamonis
9:45 a.m.
Michael Gligic, Kyle Westmoreland, Sebastian Vazquez
12:35 p.m.
Kevin Tway, Kevin Streelman, Aaron Rai
12:46 ap.m.
Byeong Hun An, Hayden Buckley, Greyson Sigg
12:57 p.m.
James Hahn, Davis Riley, David Lipsky
1:08 p.m.
Chad Ramey, Joel Dahmen, Francesco Molinari
1:19 p.m.
Seamus Power, Collin Morikawa, Emiliano Grillo
1:30 p.m.
Scottie Scheffler, Viktor Hovland, Keith Mitchell
1:41 p.m.
Patton Kizzire, Patrick Rodgers, Mark Hubbard
1:52 p.m.
Michael Kim, Beau Hossler, Callum Tarren
2:03 p.m.
Brent Grant, Eric Cole, Adri Arnaus
2:14 p.m.
Ben Griffin, Herrison Endycott, Enrique Marin Santander
2:25 p.m.
Zecheng Dou, Paul Haley II, Ryan Hall
10th tee
Tee time
Players
7:55 a.m.
Nate Lashley, Danny Lee, Kramer Hickok
8:06 a.m.
Ryan Armour, John Huh, Alex Noren
8:17 a.m.
Adam Long, Brian Harman, Maverick McNealy
8:28 a.m.
Ryan Brehm, Tom Hoge, Brendon Todd
8:39 a.m.
Tony Finau, Harris English, Sebastian Munoz
8:50 a.m.
Billy Horschel, Justin Rose, Jason Day
9:01 a.m.
Andrew Putnam, Henrik Norlander, Austin Smotherman
9:12 a.m.
Troy Merritt, Chris Kirk, Max McGreevy
9:23 a.m.
Thomas Detry, Taylor Montgomery, Brandon Matthews
9:34 a.m.
Harry Higgs, S.H. Kim, Armando Favela
9:45 a.m.
MJ Daffue, Matti Schmid, Jose de Jesus Rodriguez
12:35 p.m.
David Lingmerth, Doug Ghim, Brandon Wu
12:46 ap.m.
Jason Dufner, Aaron Baddeley, Ben Martin
12:57 p.m.
Scott Piercy, Austin Cook, Charley Hoffman
1:08 p.m.
J.T. Poston, Cameron Champ, Robert Streb
1:19 p.m.
Martin Laird, Richy Werenski, Nick Taylor
1:30 p.m.
K.H. Lee, Garrick Higgo, Tyler Duncan
1:41 p.m.
C.T. Pan, Russell Henley, Zac Blair
1:52 p.m.
Dylan Frittelli, Brian Davis, Justin Suh
2:03 p.m.
Dean Burmester, Ben Taylor, Augusto Nunez
2:14 p.m.
Joseph Bramlett, Will Gordon, Travis Vick
2:25 p.m.
Robby Shelton, Kevin Yu, Travis Trace
How to watch
You can watch Golf Channel for free on fuboTV. All times Eastern.
We recommend interesting sports viewing and streaming opportunities. If you sign up to a service by clicking one of the links, we may earn a referral fee.
“For Will (Gordon), the biggest thing was for him to understand how good he truly is.”
On Wednesday night, on the eve of the World Wide Technology Championship at Mayakoba, Scottie Scheffler took part in a cooking class at the Fairmont Mayakoba in Riviera Maya, Mexico, host of the tournament. How is Scheffler, the reigning Masters and PGA Tour Player of the Year, in the kitchen?
“I mean, I get by,” he said. “Last night was fun having them show us what to do. Yeah, it was definitely a lot of fun.”
Scheffler’s game was cooking on Thursday morning at El Camaleón Golf Course as he carded a bogey-free 6-under 65, his lowest opening round score to par on Tour this year and three strokes off the lead set by Will Gordon in the first round.
“I think when you’re hitting the ball well here, you’re going to get a ton of looks,” said Scheffler, who enjoyed a bunch of tap-in birdies. “No. 9 may have been the longest birdie putt I made today and it was like seven feet.”
Scheffler’s 30-week reign at World No. 1 ended two weeks ago when Rory McIlroy won the CJ Cup in South Carolina, but a victory or solo second would lift him back to the top spot. Scheffler’s sizzling start was matched by Norway’s Viktor Hovland, who played in the same threesome and is striving for his own unique measure of achievement this week.
Hovland is the two-time defending champion of the event and seeking to become just the fourth player to win the same tournament three consecutive years in the last 30 years on the PGA Tour. Hovland started slowly, mixing two birdies and two bogeys on his first nine holes, before coming alive.
“I just kept telling myself that I’m playing well,” he said. “I was a little frustrated being only even par after that front nine making really nice birdies, but bogeying 13, that’s usually – I mean, that’s two shots right there. Then hit it in the water on 17 as well and that just shouldn’t happen. So I gave away a few shots on that side, but really happy on the back there.”
Hovland carded four birdies and holed a bunker shot for eagle at the par-5 seventh hole to post 65, two strokes better than his opening-round performance on his way to his two victories in the Yucatan Peninsula.
“So even improved on that,” said Hovland, who is 49 under in his last nine rounds at El Camaleón.
It was a day to go low or be left in the dust. Over an inch of rain fell on Wednesday, leaving the course soft and meant the Tour implemented preferred lies. The big guns weren’t the only ones who took advantage. Second-year Tour pro Will Gordon, the 2019 SEC Player of the Year out of Vanderbilt and a first-team All-American, birdied the first four holes on the back nine en route to shooting 9-under 62. Gordon turned pro the same year as Hovland and Scheffler but is still searching for his first Tour title.
Will Gordon of United States plays his shot from the 14th tee during the first round of the World Wide Technology Championship at Club de Gold El Camaleon at on November 03, 2022 in Playa del Carmen. (Photo by Hector Vivas/Getty Images)
He earned his Tour card for the 2020-21 season but finished 159th in the FedEx Cup standings and needed another year of seasoning on the Korn Ferry Tour. Last season, the 26-year-old notched his first professional victory at the Albertson Boise Open to return to the big leagues.
“For Will, the biggest thing was for him to understand how good he truly is,” said Sirius XM PGA Tour Radio’s John Rollins. “I think he’s finally starting to figure that out and kind of get his feet underneath of him. Expect some good things out of Will Gordon this season.”
So far, so good. He’s made the cut in all four of his starts this season and played the weekend at nine straight tournaments in all. Gordon’s prodigious length off the tee and a dialed in putter – he took just 25 putts – were a winning combination in the first round.
“I don’t know what the rest of the week holds, nothing’s promised and nothing’s given, so I’ve just got to continue to try to go out and earn it,” he said.
Here are some of the best images from the week in Mexico.
For the fourth consecutive week, the PGA Tour is in a different country.
The World Wide Technology Championship at Mayakoba boasts a fantastic field including world No. 2 Scottie Scheffler, back-to-back defending champion Viktor Hovland, Collin Morikawa and more. Scheffler is the betting favorite at +900 followed closely by Hovland at +1000.
Hovland is looking to become the first golfer to win three straight times at an event since Steve Stricker won the John Deere Classic thrice from 2009-11.
Everything you need to know for the first round in Mexico.
For the fourth time in as many weeks, the PGA Tour is in a new country.
El Camaleon Golf Course at Mayakoba hosts the 2022 World Wide Technology Championship at Mayakoba in Riviera Maya, Mexico. The course is a par-71 layout measuring at 7,017 yards. Greg Norman was the architect, and Viktor Hovland is a two-time defending champion. He’s trying to become the first golfer to win three straight tournaments at an event since Steve Stricker won the John Deere Classic thrice from 2009-11.
From tee times to TV and streaming info, here’s what you need to know for the first round of the 2022 World Wide Technology Championship at Mayakoba. All times Eastern.
We recommend interesting sports viewing and streaming opportunities. If you sign up to a service by clicking one of the links, we may earn a referral fee.
The duo were teammates at the Presidents Cup in September at Quail Hollow Club, and they were even paired together and won both foursomes matches.
On Tuesday during his pre-tournament press conference ahead of the 2022 World Wide Technology Championship at Mayakoba in Mexico, Finau was asked what advice he had to give Homa, whose son Cam was born Sunday.
“The best parenting advice I have is just take care of your wife, that’s it,” Finau said. “The wife is the one that runs the home, and women run the world. My mom and my wife are two of the strongest people that I know, probably the two strongest people that I know. The best advice I have for any husband is take care of your wife. If Max does that, the family and the kids will be just fine.”
Homa won’t be teeing it up this week in Riviera Maya, but Finau will make his PGA Tour season debut at El Camaleon Golf Course. He’s coming off a successful season that saw him win in back-to-back weeks for his third and fourth titles, and he built on that during his second Presidents Cup appearance, going 3-1-0 in the American win.
Finau has finished in the top 10 twice during six starts in this event, so he comes in with high expectations.
“It’s not a long golf course, but as my driving has improved, it has become a golf course that I’ve think played better and has looked better to me,” Finau said. “So I’m looking forward to driving it well this week hopefully and scoring well.”
There hasn’t been much golf in Finau’s life the past month. He said he has spent a lot of time with his kids between the Presidents Cup and now, and only in the past 10-12 days picked his clubs back up.
However, he has lofty expectations for this coming season. A goal setter, Finau hasn’t made his list quite yet, but he said he will sit down before Thursday and think about what he wants to achieve.
However, one of the goals is going to be making the 2023 United States Ryder Cup team at Marco Simone in Rome. Finau has made the past two Ryder Cup teams and has a 3-3-0 record.
“I know for sure right off the top of my head, being on that Ryder Cup team in Rome is going to be a goal of mine,” Finau said. “It’s something that I think a lot of guys want to be a part of, and I’m included in that. I would love to be a part of that team in Rome, so I think right out of the gate I know that’s something that will be one of my goals.”
If Jason Day can get it going on the greens in Mexico, watch out.
After a week on the beautiful island of Bermuda, the PGA Tour heads to another breathtaking part of the world, Riviera Maya, Mexico.
Several of the best players in the world, including world No. 2 Scottie Scheffler and two-time defending champion Viktor Hovland, headline yet another strong field.
After his 2020 triumph, Hovland came back to Mayakoba last season and out dueled Carlos Ortiz and Justin Thomas, winning by four strokes.
Five players who finished inside the top 10 last season now play on the Saudi Arabia-backed LIV Golf Series.
Scheffler, who grabbed a solo fourth here a year ago, is the betting favorite at +900.
Golf course
El Camaleón Golf Course at Mayakoba | Par 71 | 7,017 yards
The 15th hole during the final round of the 2021 World Wide Technology Championship at Mayakoba on El Camaleon golf course in Playa del Carmen, Mexico. (Photo: Mike Ehrmann/Getty Images)
Data Golf Information
Course Fit (compares golf courses based on the degree to which different golfer attributes — such as driving distance — to predict who performs well at each course – DataGolf): 1. Sedgefield Country Club, 2. TPC Sawgrass, 3. TPC Potomac
Percent chance to win (based on course history, fit, trending, etc.): 1. Scottie Scheffler (10.6 percent), 2. Collin Morikawa (5.2 percent), 3. Billy Horschel (4.6 percent)
