Only a few minutes into the first round of The PLAYERS Championship, Collin Morikawa has already called it quits. The 29-year-old was coming off a great run on the PGA Tour recently. But one unfortunate swing on the opening day cut short his campaign at TPC Sawgrass. Ironically, he wasn’t even looking to hit the ball.

As Jeff Eisenband from the PGA Tour reported, “Collin Morikawa WD at @THEPLAYERS due to injury. Looked like he tweaked his back with a swing on the 11th tee (his 2nd hole of the day). Morikawa entered the week 1st in the FedExCup Standings and had the 3rd-shortest betting odds after Scottie and Rory. Now, out in Round 1.”

They also shared a picture of Morikawa and his caddie speaking to a rules official after the incident. Interestingly, replays from the moment he picked up the injury show he wasn’t even trying to drive the ball.

That’s right! While setting himself up for the par-5 11th hole, which was his second for the day, he was practicing his swing. Based on the video evidence, it seemed like he overstretched his back on the follow-through of his downward swing. That’s when Morikawa was seen turning around, holding his back, hinting that he was injured.

Only moments later, it was confirmed that he had sustained a back injury. This took everyone on the internet by surprise, as he had only started the round a few minutes before that. Moreover, there were no signs of Morikawa having any back issues before the beginning of the tournament.

In fact, the only pro who was remotely at risk of suffering through back issues was Rory McIlroy. Unlike Morikawa, the Irishman was already recovering from an injury he sustained last week. There were doubts about him even joining the field at TPC Sawgrass this week.

Withdrawing from the flagship event might be quite upsetting for Morikawa. Especially considering the wild run had been in recently.

Will the injury break lead to a loss of momentum for Collin Morikawa?

Collin Morikawa didn’t kick off 2026 with the best result. He missed the cut in the Sony Open in Hawaii after shooting an even par. The T54 finish at TPC Scottsdale was also not as exciting as he would have hoped for. Even if he played the weekend rounds.

However, the 29-year-old picked up the pace at Pebble Beach. He ended his 847-day winless streak by capturing the 2026 AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am title. And he was able to keep up the momentum in the next couple of events he played after it.

Morikawa ended the Genesis Invitational with a T7 finish. He then moved on to the Arnold Palmer Invitational to grab a solo fifth, 4 strokes behind the winner. Coming to TPC Sawgrass, he would have hoped to continue his great run of form and perhaps grab another great result.

But after withdrawing from the PLAYERS Championship, he might be at risk of losing the momentum he has built over the last few weeks. It’s unclear how severe his injury is yet. But if the recovery period is long, then Morikawa might find it difficult to find his swing again when he eventually returns.