M
any people think it was the 2014 Masters,
which turned Fowler’s career around, at a
point when it could seemingly have gone
either way. However, the player himself mentions the
Shell Houston Open as the turning point, where he
finished 6th, with a total of nine under par. This gave
Fowler the confidence to go and perform at Augusta,
where he finished T5 and there was no looking back
from there. Two second place finishes at the US
Open and Open Championship and a T3 at the PGA
Championship, meant Fowler made history as being
only the third player, along with Jack Nicklaus and
Tiger Woods, to finish in the top five of all four majors
in the same year.
By the end of 2014, Fowler was inside the top ten
golfers in the world but people were still questioning
his win record. Despite the recording breaking major
year for Fowler a pole by his golfing piers placed himself
and Ian Poulter atop of the most “overrated” players
in the sport. The anonymous survey soon picked up
speed, media outlets once again began focussing on
his imperfections and questioning his ability to make
it at the top. Poulter, famous for having his say via
social media immediately jumped to his own defence
by posting his up his stats (the 6th highest earner of all
time on the European Tour) but Fowler did not have
that history to draw on. The American laughed off the
unwanted title and set out to put the record straight.
30 | YOURCADDY MAG - ISSUE 7
During 2015, Fowler won the Players Championship,
the Scottish Open and the Deutsche Bank
Championship, answering his critics in the best way
he could. That being said, 2016 still opened off with
fans and pundits questioning Fowler’s ability, this
time, surrounding the four major tournaments.
Fowler has started 2016 well, winning in Dubai
and finishing runner-up at the Waste Management
Phoenix Open. The next step is to win a major and
there is little doubt Fowler has what it takes in terms
of ability but there is one other factor, which people
seem to forget in their critique of Fowler and that’s
the other players. At the present time, there are
a number of great young golfers at the top of the
game. Jordan Spieth, Rory McIlroy, Jason Day, Dustin
Johnson and Hideki Matsuyama, to name but a few,
are all competing for the same titles as Fowler, making
it an increasingly difficult time to win a major.
The 27 year old continues to attend Bible studies every
week on tour, doesn’t drink alcohol and continues to
work on the Rickie Fowler Foundation, which helps
Japanese and Native American communities. So there
is very little to suggest Fowler is going to fall away at
any point during his career, unless injury strikes.
Rickie Fowler will win a major, he has the ability and
temperament to do so, we just need to let it happen.
#overrated