Collin Morikawa Refutes PGA Tour Pro's Claim of Players Cheating Driver Test
Based on facts, either observed and verified firsthand by the reporter, or reported and verified from knowledgeable sources.
Collin Morikawa has gotten into the habit of contradicting Lucas Glover, even without intending to do so. A few months ago, the two had a somewhat contentious exchange about the AimPoint technique, and now, they have opposing views once again, this time about alleged cheating during driver testing.
Glover recently claimed that some players hide their real competition drivers when they're selected for testing. From the Muirfield Village Golf Club, home of this week's Memorial Tournament, Morikawa expressed himself to be completely in disagreement:
"I don't think people do that. I think people joke about it, but I don't think people do it. And if they do, then, I mean, sure. Is it going to help? I don't think it's going to help," he said.
"When these fail, we're on such fine margins that they give us this like green, yellow, red. Like we want our drivers to be in yellow, it's passing, but it's like, you want it to be fast, you don't want it to be slow."
"But if it's close to failing or if it's failing and it's close to cracking, I mean, what are you gaining? You're not gaining anything. Guys aren't going to hit it 25 yards further. I don't think it's really changing much. It's just you got to have a line somewhere and that's where they have drawn the line."
Collin Morikawa of the United States hits a tee shot on the 12th hole during the second round of the PGA Championship at Quail Hollow Country Club on May 16, 2025 in Charlotte, North Carolina.
Collin Morikawa of the United States hits a tee shot on the 12th hole during the second round of the PGA Championship at Quail Hollow Country Club on May 16, 2025 in Charlotte, North Carolina.Glover used his SiriusXM PGA Tour Radio show to drop the shocking bombshell that not all players are following the rules regarding driver testing:
"Most guys don't give them their real driver anyway," he said. "They hand over their backup so it won't fail testing. It's their way of protecting the driver they actually use."
The issue came to the forefront two weeks ago during the PGA Championship, when Rory McIlroy's driver was famously declared non-conforming. Despite being one of the pre-tournament favorites, the Northern Irishman performed poorly in the event, which many attribute to his need to play with a different driver than usual.
However, it's worth noting that Scottie Scheffler also had to use a backup driver because his competition one was declared non-conforming as well. Scheffler went on to win the event.
Last February, amid a debate surrounding pace of play, Lucas Glover proposed a series of measures that included banning the AimPoint technique for reading greens. At the time, he said it's a technique that "takes forever" and has no real effect on improving putting.
Morikawa, one of the top players who use AimPoint, responded to these comments by saying that long putters should also be banned. This controversial type of club is used by many players, including Glover.
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14 hours ago
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US Ryder Cup captain Bradley wins the Travelers. Lee and Jimenez take major titles
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NBC Sports
14 hours ago
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Keegan Bradley wins shocker at Travelers, denying Tommy Fleetwood first Tour win
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USA Today
a day ago
- USA Today
Nelly Korda calls hole locations at unrelenting KPMG Women's PGA 'almost impossible'
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The dates for the 2031 USWO at Oakland Hills Country Club have yet to be decided, so there's a chance that something could change. Locals suggest hosting nothing here in the summer past June 1. Lauren Coughlin was packing up her golf travel bag by the clubhouse as the final groups were making the turn. Coughlin, a two-time winner on the LPGA, noted that the cut was actually higher at the 2024 U.S. Women's Open at Lancaster Country Club (8 over), but there weren't many complaints about setup outside of the 12th hole on Thursday. 'Lancaster was very difficult, and it demanded a lot,' said Coughlin, 'but if you hit good golf shots you were rewarded. I think you can hit good golf shots out here and not be rewarded, and that's the difference.' Stacy Lewis told Golfweek on Friday that the course was 'making very good players look silly' and attributed the slow play to setup. 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'Just one of those golf courses that, I don't know, like it can be a bit tricky with the rough, and then the way that they designed a few holes, when the prevailing winds are downwind, you can't stop it anyway, and then you need to bump it in, but you can't bump it in because of the kind of grass that it is," said Hull, referring to the Northbridge Bermuda. 'I don't know, it's just like a golf course design that makes it so tricky.' Only two holes averaged below par, the reachable par-5 ninth and the drivable par-4 15th. Officials had to switch the ninth and 18th holes for this championship to make room for hospitality. The 2023 Senior PGA ended on a reachable par 5. The 18th this week, however, has had more double bogeys over the course of three rounds (22) than birdies (15). Crews trying to keep greens softer Officials say the greens have been watered every night and morning due to the extreme heat and high winds and will be watered once again this evening. There were six holes on Saturday in which less than 40 percent of the field hit the green in regulation. Startling given that the tour average is 68.8 percent for the season. Nelly Korda hit nine greens in regulation in the third round and is averaging 63 percent for the week, 11 percent less than her 2025 average. Minjee Lee posted the only bogey-free day of the round so far this week on Saturday, a 3-under 69, and carries a four-shot lead into the final round over Jeeno Thitikul, the best player on tour without a major. They're the only two players under par for the tournament. Thompson trails by seven and Korda by eight. When the Senior PGA was held here in May 2023, shortly after the golf course opened, Steve Stricker and Padraig Harrington went into a playoff after finishing knotted at 18 under. Conditions were softer and cooler with less wind, miles away from what the LPGA's best have experienced this week, and more in line with the PGA Championship field will likely see in two years. 'The thing is, it's so hard for us to speak out, because I feel like then people are going to think that we're whining,' Korda told Golfweek after the round, 'but the men, their apex is so much higher, so when they do land it on the green, they can do more with it, at the end of the day. 'Our apexes only get so high, and they only can get so high in 35 mph wind. If there's 35 mph gusts, then it's so hard for us to actually float it into these greens because you're trying to penetrate through the wind and not have the ball blow all over the place. 'It is a major championship, and it should play hard. I think 100 percent it should play hard. But good shots need to also be rewarded, and I feel like you're always on defense right now.'
