Rickie Fowler's return to kind already appears like distant reminiscence

Late in the summertime of 2022, Rickie Fowler was deep in a well-documented spiral. He hadn’t gained since February 2019, hadn’t performed in both the Masters or the U.S. Open since 2020 and his world rating had plummeted to 185th. Determined for solutions that he wasn’t discovering within the filth throughout marathon vary periods in South Florida, Fowler referred to as Mr. Repair-It, as in his former swing coach, the legendary Butch Harmon. Over the approaching months, Harmon and Fowler reunited, each just about and in individual, and piece by piece started rebuilding the swing that had as soon as made Fowler a top-5 participant and constant risk within the majors.

Progress got here rapidly: T6 on the Fortinet in mid-September; T2 on the Zozo, in Japan, in October; extra consistency throughout just about each a part of his recreation. When the brand new yr dawned, Fowler picked up the place he’d left off. After lacking 9 cuts within the 2021-22 season, he didn’t miss a weekend in 10 begins from January by way of early Could and completed prime 15 six occasions. That made-cuts streak ended on the PGA Championship however he rapidly regained his kind, ending T6 and T9 in his two begins earlier than the U.S. Open. For those who’re a Rickie fan, you realize what got here subsequent: a 62-68 begin on the U.S. Open at Los Angeles Nation Membership that gave Fowler the solo 36-hole lead. Was Fowler lastly…again? The golf world seemingly wished to shout as a lot from the mountaintops, however Fowler was reluctant to ship the mandatory sound chunk.

“I wouldn’t say it’s all again,” he stated ominously after his second spherical in L.A. “It will probably get taken away in a short time. Anybody that performs this recreation in any respect, you by no means know.”

Fowler didn’t win that week — a 70-75 weekend left him 5 behind Wyndham Clark, in a tie for fifth — however he did nab a victory simply a few weeks later on the Rocket Mortgage Basic, knocking off Collin Morikawa and Adam Hadwin in a playoff. For the primary time in additional than 4 years, Fowler was a PGA Tour winner once more.

This week the Tour returns to Detroit Golf Club for the 2024 version of the Rocket Mortgage. As defending champion, Fowler ought to be among the many favorites, however the sportsbooks know what Fowler is aware of: Not less than a few of his struggles have returned, and even his +5,000 odds are most likely beneficiant. In 17 begins this calendar yr, Fowler is with no top-10 end, and just about each a part of his recreation has contributed to the slide. In every of the six main Strokes Gained classes — from driving to iron play to placing — he ranks outdoors the highest 100. “You’re seeing it all through the bag the place issues haven’t been nearly as good,” Fowler stated Wednesday. His world rank, which had climbed again to 21 in the midst of final yr, has dropped to 50, however Knowledge Golf, which places higher weight on latest efficiency, has him at 98.  

Type, as any golfer at any stage is aware of properly, comes and goes, and it may be troublesome to pinpoint the second it leaves you. However in Fowler’s case, his play has been unremarkable since his win a yr in the past. From mid-July of final yr by way of the FedEx Cup Playoffs, he had only one top-20 end — on the 30-player Tour Championship. As a captain’s choose on the Ryder Cup, Fowler performed solely two matches and gained no factors. He opened the 2024 season by lacking two cuts in his first 4 tournaments.

“Clearly horrible begin to the yr for me coming off of final yr,” he stated in early-March on the Cognizant Basic, close to his West Palm Seashore, Fla., dwelling. “By no means bought something happening the West Coast. I don’t suppose we precisely had the perfect climate, both. I’m not blaming it on that, but it surely undoubtedly didn’t assist me to get issues going.” He added, “I’m able to form of get issues going again how they have been final yr.”

However issues didn’t get going. In his subsequent 10 begins, Fowler cracked the highest 20 simply as soon as, on the RBC Heritage, adopted by two missed cuts, on the Memorial, the place he carded a second-round 82, and the U.S. Open, the place he posted a second-round 77. Final week on the Vacationers: a small ray of sunshine. Fowler closed with a 65 that landed him a T20.

So, what’s the deal? Fowler has nonetheless been working with Harmon, his final in-person session coming on the Masters in April. However he believes his woes are stemming much less from his full swing than they’re from his ineffective placing; Fowler is shedding 0.244 to the sector on the greens, which ranks 131st on Tour. That deficiency, he says, has put strain on him to execute different pictures.

“A giant a part of releasing myself up and permitting myself to play higher golf begins on the greens and helps once I’m making putts, which final week began to see that,” he stated Wednesday. He was echoing a sentiment he had expressed on the Vacationers on Sunday when he stated: “You’re not seeing putts go in and it form of provides some further stress to having to hit greens or hit it nearer, chip it shut, that circle will get fairly a bit larger when you see some go in.”

When requested on the Vacationers if he’s feeling pissed off, Fowler stated: “Undoubtedly not anyplace as unhealthy because it was a couple of years again, however some similarities there. Having been by way of that and handled that and in the end coming again to enjoying properly, I can take care of absolutely anything.” Then he added one other acquainted chorus: “I feel an enormous factor is all the time form of making an attempt to place issues into perspective, household stuff, you realize, with a number of the guys we’ve misplaced a part of the household out right here on the Tour, yeah, it’s not that large of a deal, however all of us form of simply proceed to grind.”

Fowler was referring to Tour professional Grayson Murray, whose Could suicide despatched shockwaves by way of the Tour group.

Fowler isn’t the identical one who burst onto Tour in 2010 with orange pants, shoulder-length hair and seemingly limitless potential (he beat out Rory McIlroy that season for Rookie of the 12 months honors). He’s a household man now, with a spouse and younger daughter and one other little one on the best way. Successful nonetheless means so much however “it’s not every little thing,” he advised Golf Channel reporter Todd Lewis this week.

When Fowler was unable to capitalize on his halftime U.S. Open lead and win his first main, he stated on Sunday night of that week — this was after capturing a disappointing 75 — that seeing Maya earlier than he ducked into scoring “form of takes quite a lot of that away, as a result of within the form of large image, large scheme of issues, sure, we need to win tournaments and be the one holding the trophy, however she may care much less if I shoot 65 or 85.”

Fowler himself nonetheless cares what he shoots, in fact. Even when his perspective has advanced, he’s nonetheless prideful and hungry; his profession will probably be short-lived if he’s not. Can the throwback Donald Ross design that awaits him this week function a spark?

“It’s a enjoyable course to play,” he stated, “and particularly having good reminiscences and coming off the win final yr, we’ll see if we are able to form of reignite some stuff.”

Alan Bastable

Golf.com Editor

As GOLF.com’s govt editor, Bastable is liable for the editorial path and voice of one of many recreation’s most revered and extremely trafficked information and repair websites. He wears many hats — enhancing, writing, ideating, growing, daydreaming of at some point breaking 80 — and feels privileged to work with such an insanely proficient and hardworking group of writers, editors and producers. Earlier than grabbing the reins at GOLF.com, he was the options editor at GOLF Journal. A graduate of the College of Richmond and the Columbia College of Journalism, he lives in New Jersey together with his spouse and foursome of children.