The post-round interview, like any postgame or mid-game interview in other sports, really doesn’t yield anything special. More and more we are seeing players say less and less. “I drove it well today, struck it well too, missed some putts, left a few out there.” Rinse, repeat.
But there are still a handful of players out there who will give you something raw and real. Rory McIlroy, Eddie Pepperell, Shane Lowry, Max Homa and even a guy like Kevin Na instantly come to mind. You can add England’s James Morrison to that list. Morrison, a two-time European Tour winner, has had a brutal season, missing nine of 19 cuts and finishing inside the top 20 only once. The struggles have taken a toll on Morrison, so much so that after failing to make the weekend at the Scottish Open in July, the 34-year-old was considering walking away from the game entirely.
It’s a good thing he didn’t, because Morrison returned to competition on Thursday at the Scandinavian Invitation and opened with a four-under 66 at the Hills Sports and Golf Club in Gothenburg, Sweden. Afterwards, Morrison gave one of the most honest post-round interviews you’ll see this entire golf season.
“Those four weeks off after Scotland came at the right time for me to actually kind of figure out what I want to do, figure out whether I want to play golf anymore and what my direction is,” Morrison told the European Tour. “I feel like I’ve kind of got things on an even keel again.”
It hasn’t been just the on-course happenings that caused Morrison to re-assess things. Off the course has been a struggle as well.
“It’s a real mix of – it’s my 10th year out here, I’ve won twice, but this has been more not about golf but everything else. Tour life’s getting to be a chore, travelling is becoming hard. I’ve got a little boy at home, my wife at home, she’s having some health problems, had surgery two days ago. So a lot at home going on that’s taken my attention away from the game, and I really questioned whether that was it. Scotland was close to being my last ever event.
“But that’s just the way it goes, that’s life and you’ve got to deal with it.”
The 66 was Morrison’s low round of the season, putting him in a tie for seventh at the completion of round one. More importantly, it’s confirmation that the work he and his old coach Hugh Marr, whom he went back to after years of changing coaches in the search for what he calls “better golf,” is paying off.
“I’ve realised why I’m doing it and what I’m doing it for and I’m in a happier place personally. So it’s not about golf, golf is not an issue for me. When you’re happy and you’ve got life in check you can play well.”
For the rest of Morrison’s insightful comments, watch the full interview below:
Raw. Honest. Incredibly insightful.@jimbogolf1 opens up on his struggles & renewed positivity.#ScandinavianInvitation pic.twitter.com/lEWLfGYlmm
— The European Tour (@EuropeanTour) August 22, 2019
Great stuff from Morrison. As always, there’s no cheering in the press box, but it’s safe to say everyone will be pulling for Morrison this weekend after watching this.
