In a playful segment hosted by Dan Rapaport and Ben Boskovich on Skratch Golf TV’s DanonGolf Show, the annual Doggie Awards handed out one of its most memorable honors yet — Front Office Executive of the Year Award. And in a tongue-in-cheek twist, Collin Morikawa was named the winner, because in 2025, no one made bolder, uncomfortable, and awkward calls than Morikawa.

Late on Monday, Dan Rapaport took to Instagram to announce Morikawa as the winner. “Executive of the year. Font office executive of the year. Golfers are owners of their business now, you know, they got big teams. They’re the CEO of their own. big year for guys breaking up with their best friends. It’s a big year for breakups, and our winner of the Front Office Executive of the year is, drum roll, please… It’s Collin Morikawa.” Rapaport began. The bit, delivered with a smirk, highlighted the new era of professional golf where players are effectively CEOs of their own operations. And Morikawa was honoured.

“Wow. What a huge honor to win the Front Office Executive of the Year,” Morikawa said in response, delivering his trademark wry grin. “I’ve had to make some tough calls this year, ultimately, hopefully for the better down the road. We’ll have to wait and find out, but what a big… what a big achievement,” he added. And ‘tough calls’ is putting it lightly. The award is a nod to Morikawa’s whirlwind of caddie changes in 2025: five different caddies in a matter of months.

It all started in April, after the RBC Heritage, when longtime looper J.J. Jakovac, who had been by Morikawa’s side since he turned pro in 2019, was let go. Morikawa finished tied 54th at the event, and his decision to split with Jakovac came shortly a month after Jakovac made an ace on the famed 17th hole at TPC Sawgrass during the caddie competition ahead of the 2025 PLAYERS Championship. Morikawa had won two majors (2020 PGA Championship & The 2021 Open) and reached as high as No. 2 (2021) in the world with Jakovac on the bag.

Collin Morikawa then moved on to veteran caddie Joe Greiner during the Zurich Classic, who was coming fresh off his breakup with Max Homa. They missed the cut at that event, and the experienced partnership didn’t stick. “We gave it a shot, but it wasn’t the right fit,” Morikawa later admitted. That was just the beginning of the carousel.

Next came Billy Foster, the seasoned looper best known for his work with Lee Westwood and Matt Fitzpatrick. The pairing lasted all of one week and ended with a subpar showing (tied 20th) at the Memorial Tournament. “Billy’s great, but we didn’t quite sync the way I’d hoped,” Morikawa said post his split for the third time.

From there, he turned to a familiar face— college teammate K.K. Limbhasut. The two shared a strong bond from their days at the University of California, but it didn’t translate to leaderboard success. “Having KK on the bag brought back memories, but we both knew it was a temporary solution,” Morikawa said after his tied 40th finish at the Rocket Mortgage Classic.

Finally, in August, Collin Morikawa made what he hopes is the final switch, bringing in Mark Urbanek, who was formerly Tony Finau’s caddie for five years. The switch was just ahead of the FedEx St. Jude Championship in August, where Morikawa finished tied 22nd. “It takes guts to get rid of a guy and then the second and third and fourth time, too. That’s right. It still… It’s still a lot. That was just the first step. Executive of the front office, executive of the year,” Rapaport added when he appreciated Morikawa making these awkward decisions constantly.

While the hosts didn’t miss the opportunity to poke fun at the revolving door of loopers for Morikawa, they also appreciated the fact that it’s not easy to make such decisions. These are hard decisions, the kind that can strain friendships, stir up public opinion, and still not guarantee better results. But as Rapaport put it, ‘Golfers are the CEO of their own,’ and there’s no one better than Morikawa to display that.  With Mark Urbanek in charge of the bags (for now), it remains to be seen if Morikawa has an improved showing in Napa Valley.

Collin Morikawa’s appearance in Napa Valley after 5 years

Collin Morikawa will tee it up at the Procore Championship in Napa, California, this week as part of Team USA’s early preparations for the 2025 Ryder Cup. Team captain Keegan Bradley announced that 10 players of his 12-man squad would use the event, which is the first stop in the PGA Tour’s FedEx Cup Fall, as both a team-building opportunity and a way to shake off any rust before heading to Bethpage Black in two weeks. A California native, Morikawa is no stranger to Napa, having last played there in 2020 when he finished tied 10th.

Set to make his third Ryder Cup appearance, Morikawa enters this year’s matches with something to prove. After a dominant debut at Whistling Straits in 2021, where he went undefeated and earned 3.5 points, Morikawa now returns to Team USA as a captain’s pick, hoping to regain his top form amid a struggling season. Morikawa hasn’t won since the 2023 ZoZo Championship and has struggled a lot this season with just four top-10 finishes. A strong showing in Napa Valley this week could be the momentum boost he needs before the high-stakes battle at Bethpage later this month.