For the first time since 2019, Rickie Fowler is lifting a PGA Tour trophy.
Fowler, who came close to his first career major win at the 2023 U.S. Open, defeated Adam Hadwin and Collin Morikawa in a playoff hole to win the Rocket Mortgage Classic in Detroit.
As you’d expect for someone that lost his swing for awhile before finding it again, Fowler saw his putt go in, and he looked to the sky and breathed a sigh of relief as the crowd around the green cheered.
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All three golfers were 24-under when 72 holes came to an end, leading to the playoff hole on 18. Fowler’s approach shot allowed him a birdie opportunity, and after Hadwin and Morikawa couldn’t make it in the cup, he knew he had a chance to finish it off.
Fowler, who has been putting great of late, had a confident stroke. It tumbled from left to right and found the bottom of the hole.
Fowler has consistently said, “I’m not scared to fail,” because he has been to rock bottom, being cut from tournaments in recent seasons and missing out on major appearances. That mindset, along with reuniting with swing coach Butch Harmon, has allowed him to swing freely and he has been hunting flag sticks since the end of 2022 leading into this year.
“Really the main thing is just get back to playing golf and not playing too much golf swing,” Fowler told Fox News Digital before playing in the 2022 PGA Championship. “Still working on things I knew I needed to do, and Butch knew I needed to do as well and getting into some better positions. But at the end of the day, keeping the mind pretty free of swing thoughts other than maybe one or two key things to focus on. Exaggerating quite a bit in practice so that I don’t have to think about it too much while I play, and that’s been one of the biggest things. Being able to go out and play golf and hit shots and not be thinking too much about the golf swing.”
Fowler ended up being cut in the PGA Championship, as Oak Hill Country Club was troubling for many other top names like Justin Thomas and Jon Rahm.
However, the 2023 U.S. Open was a completely different animal, as he was tied for the lead with Wyndham Clark going into the final round on Sunday. Fowler couldn’t keep pace as that first major victory still alludes him.
But you can bet he is loving every second of victory in Detroit on Sunday, as he can finally hold some hardware again, realizing all the hard work and persistence to get back to the top of golf has paid off.
This is Fowler’s seventh PGA Tour victory, with the last coming at the Waste Management Phoenix Open on Feb. 3, 2019.
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