“Collin Morikawa might drop out of the top 10, down to nine. It’s kind of crazy,” Andy Johnson of the Fried Egg Golf warned not long ago. As it turns out, the prediction has seemingly come true with Morikawa finding himself placed at 9th in the OWGR. That comes as a surprise, given the golfer started the year at 4th. Overtaking him was the European Ryder Cup star, who had some fun with hecklers at Bethpage.

Robert MacIntyre teed it up at the Alfred Dunhill Links Championship in Scotland just a few days ago. With his blazing 18-under victory, MacIntyre received a massive boost in his OWGR points. Sitting at 9th earlier, the extra 33.86618 points pushed his rankings, overtaking Collin Morikawa. That win also boosted his Race to Dubai rankings, pushing his rank to 6th. However, this wasn’t a one-off thing.

MacIntyre has stacked multiple commendable performances this year, showcasing his consistency and form. Just a little over a week ago, he flaunted his exceptional shot-shaping at Bethpage. Contributing 1.5 points to the European team, MacIntyre surged back from his Friday foursomes loss with a decisive 1-up foursomes win on Saturday. Moreover, Rob tied his Sunday singles against Sam Burns. His performance in the PGA Tour season has been impressive, too.

With 11 top-20 finishes on the PGA Tour and 2 runner-up finishes, MacIntyre has made a strong case for himself throughout the year. Across the DP World Tour, too, Rob has maintained a strong profile, with a T9 finish at the Hero Dubai Desert Classic and his recent win at the Dunhill Links. Coupled with MacIntyre’s consistency, momentum, and technical finesse, it’s only obvious that the golfer overshadows Morikawa, who has failed to find his footing the past few years.

Collin’s most recent victory was at the 2023 ZOZO Championship in Japan. That marks a two-year winless drought, something he has failed to bridge this year despite multiple near-misses. One of his first heartbreaks came at the Sentry, where he finished runner-up at 32-under. Morikawa stood at 4th at this point in his 2024 season. However, things went south from here. With another runner-up at the Arnold Palmer Invitational and a T8 at the Rocket Classic, Morikawa failed to crack the top 10 in all of his other starts.

Statistically, 2025 has been disappointing, too. Morikawa saw a huge decline in his short game, with his Strokes Gained: Putting rank falling from 73rd to 140th. While some of it can be attributed to his lingering neck and back injuries, Morikawa’s multiple caddie changes and struggles with consistency are by far the real enemies. As Morikawa continues to battle with these struggles, analysts are weighing in on what’s wrong for the former American golden boy.

Experts look at Collin Morikawa’s rocky season

While Collin Morikawa has maintained strong driving distance in the PGA Tour, it’s somewhere else he’s struggling. Yes, it’s his short game and putting. The American has faced a significant decline in his putting since his last victory in October of 2023. That pattern first came through at the Rocket Classic this year, where he finished T8.

Morikawa struggled with putting in the first round of the event, shooting a 3-under 69, six shots behind the leader. Despite solid ball-striking and scrambling, he lost over 4.5 strokes on the greens and ranked last in strokes gained putting after the first holes.

To address these struggles, Morikawa made adjustments to his putter, switching from TaylorMade TP Soto to the Olson Tour Matrix 1.0 Round putter. Despite this equipment change, Morikawa’s performance remained weak in his putting game.

At the Travelers Championship, where he debuted his new putter, Morikawa ranked 45th out of 72 in strokes gained putting for that tournament. For the event, his performance was worse, finishing 42nd overall.  He converted only one putt from outside 5 feet in the first round. Moreover, highlighting his inconsistency, Morikawa missed eight putts inside 12 feet. The golfer turned the blame to his stroke mechanics, adding, “I feel like I’m reading ‘em fine, it’s just whether I can actually start it and have it with decent speed.”

Morikawa’s struggles highlight a sharp contrast between his past dominance and current form. Unless he fixes his short game, reclaiming top spots will remain a challenge.