Rickie Fowler had it! Then he didn’t!
Fowler has dreamed of winning the US Open, but his opening seven holes on the last day doomed him. Wyndham Clark finished the tournament by dropping a short par putt to eke out a victory over Rory McIlroy and claim the 2023 USGA US Open. But what could have been for the young man from California who is having an unbelievable year!
Trivia: Who did Rickie beat for the Rookie of the Year in golf after his amazing first year on the tour? Answer below!
Butch Harmon, a long time professional golf coach, and Rickie Fowler have the golfer in a position to not only win the Most Improved Golfer award in 2023 but also that elusive major championship!
From Getty Images
2022
Last September, Rickie jettisoned his 13-year caddie and three year swing coach to get back with Butch, one of his first swing gurus. Little did he know it would spark a resurgence for the former Oklahoma State golfer!
Back in 2022, Fowler was asked about severing his caddie and coach partnership in favor of Butch and his brother, Chris. He played it somewhat coyly.
“I’m planning to have more communication with him this fall, but not committing or going anywhere outside of that right now.”
Fast-forward to today and the 2023 results with the Fowler/Harmons pairing are staggering! Here are just a few data points from PGA.com to compare:
2021-2022
Shots Gained 133rd place
Putting 161st
Approach to
Green 150th
2022-2023
Shots Gained 10th
Putting 48th
Approach to
Green 7th
Want more?
| Year | Tourney’s Played | Runner Up | Top 10 | FedEx place |
| 2021-2022 | 22 | 0 | 1 | 133rd |
| 2022-2023 | 18 | 1 | 7 | 17th |
The transformation can be viewed in three ways: swing, putting, and clubs.
Swing
Rickie is now flaring out his feet, allowing him to have a more full turn and solid clubface to the ball at impact. Here’s a great video.
It’s not a new technique. It’s finding fans as a way to get a fuller hip turn and more consistent contact on the club.
Putting
Rickie has always been a solid putter, but his performance the last few years had him searching for a new putter. Clearly he’s found it. But it took his new caddy to make him a believer.
Odyssey Jailbird Putter, picture courtesy of GolfWRX.
Rickie shared his thoughts on the new flat stick.
“I was very shocked, because I never really looked into anything that was longer, counterbalanced, or anything like that…It’s very interesting, but it’s kind of freeing me up in a way. I’m not changing stroke-wise, or setup, not gripping anything differently than my normal length putter. I just feel like it’s, I don’t know, kind of helping me do some things, and I don’t have to think about it.”
Puma/Cobra and Fowler
For so many young golfers, Rickie has been synonymous with PUMA, the iconic sportswear company. In 2010, PUMA acquired Cobra, a gold club manufacturer, and the partnership with Fowler has continued.
Clubs
Rickie’s bag has that decidedly Cobra flair, with the Aerojet LS driver and Cobra 3 and 5 woods. He trusts the Cobra King Tour iron set (4-PW) and the King 08 Versatile wedges (52 degrees, 54 and 60).
The driver is arguably the second most important club in his bag. The low spin (LS) also helps with a faster club head speed, something the 34 year old needs to keep up with the younger, stronger players.
“I actually went up about a half-degree (in loft) from where I was. The LS is a fairly low-spinning head, which has been great for me. Being able to go to something that has a little bit more loft, that can definitely help with the side-to-side dispersion, because once you go down to loft, you can get the ones that kind of squirt right or knuckle left. Loft is your friend if you can have it.”
US Open
Rickie started off doing things this weekend that NO GOLFER has ever done. Not Arnie, Jack or Tiger. He carded a 62 in a US Open! Never been done, and yet Xander Schauffele completed the same thing just 22 minutes later!
🚨 Closes with a two putt par ✅!
LOWEST ROUND IN U.S. OPEN HISTORY, WITH 10 BIRDIES! RICKIE FOWLER TIES MAJOR CHAMPIONSHIP HISTORY WITH A 62! RICKIE FOWLER IS CURRENTLY ALONE AT THE TOP WITH A ROUND 1 -8! ✅☢️🔥☢️
SIMPLY PUT. A HISTORIC OPENING ROUND! #USOpen #GoRickie pic.twitter.com/LKPHwmgOCU
— RICKIELEGION (@RickieLegion) June 15, 2023
Fowler followed up his amazing Thursday with a 68 and 70 on Friday and Saturday, respectively. Unfortunately his Sunday 75 also counts.
Sunday’s heartbreak
His first seven holes on the final round were completed in +3, and he dropped quickly off the top of the leaderboard. The crowd tried to will him back into the lead. His birdie at 8 caused a stir at the Los Angeles Country Club as Fowler made it to -8, but the four bogeys and one birdie on the back saw him drop to a tie for 5th place at five under par.
USGA problems with late tee times
Fowler and others had a legitimate beef with the tee times for the entire tournament. On Saturday at roughly 11:00 PM Eastern time, Rickie and tourney champion, Wyndham Clark, completed their round. Quickly after, Clark complained they couldn’t see shots due to the lateness in California.
Maybe the bogey at 18 late Saturday evening was the precursor to the eventual happenings on Sunday.
The Open Championship
For now, Rickie will be focusing on the last major of the year, the British Open. His near miss in Los Angeles aside, this could be the year the man from the West Coast finally lifts the Claret Jug, the trophy for the tournament.
If we venture back to 2014, the last time the Open was held at Royal Liverpool saw Rory win his only Open crown. And who was second that weekend? You guessed it…Rickie! (Remember the trivia question?)
He’s still one of the most approachable and likable golfers on the PGA Tour.
Rickie still signing autographs after a final round 75.
Thank you all for a great week and goodnight from LACC and the 2023 U.S. Open🧡
We move on. #GoRickie pic.twitter.com/St3hsUgE4B
— Rickie Fowler Updates (@GRickie23) June 19, 2023
Trivia answer. Rickie won the Rookie of the Year award for his amazing start to his career. Second place? None other than Rory McIlroy! Yep! You can’t make this up!
Tim Iskra
June 20, 2023 at 8:43 am
Very good article. I’ve been a fan of Rickie since he started. How could I not like someone who wears orange on Sundays!