Collin Morikawa triples down on his right to choose to give media silent treatment

AUGUSTA, Ga.— On the eve of the Masters, the most important tournament of the year, Collin Morikawa on Tuesday tripled down on controversial remarks he made last month about tournament media obligations.Morikawa’s ordeal began when he lost a three-shot lead with three holes to play to winner Russell Henley at the Arnold Palmer Invitational.

Afterward, he declined to speak to reporters and bolted to the locker room.The following week, at the Players Championship, Morikawa explained to reporters, “I don’t owe anyone anything.No offense to you guys, but for me, in the moment of that time, I didn’t want to be around anyone.’’After being widely criticized for that stand, he would later double down on it.

And when asked about it Tuesday, he again reiterated his stance.Morikawa insisted he was “not upset by’’ the criticism he took, saying, “I think everyone took it in a wrong direction.’’Then he added, “Look, I said I could have said it differently.But I stand by what I said.

I was in the moment.We talk about giving people space to be who they are, and at that time it was for me to be who I was.

I didn’t want to be around anyone.I didn’t even want to be around my wife.

I said hi to her after, we hugged, and I just went straight to the locker room.“In that aspect … I think there needs to be a balance, and an ebb and flow between everything.

I do want to be here for you guys [reporters], but here’s the thing: I’ve been in the top five in the world before and people don’t come up to me and ask me questions.You can’t just ask me when I’m playing well.

“You guys should be asking the top 10 players every single week, every single day and just document it.Then you get a sense of who we are and you get a flow of how that comes to be.

There’s a balance, right?“If you guys don’t want to ask me, it’s not my job to go out and tell you my story.Sometimes it is, but you do that through social media, you do that through pla...