‘A dream finish’: Rickie Fowler continues bounce-back year at Wells Fargo Championship
There’s something about the way Rickie Fowler strides around a golf course these days that feels like you’ve seen a ghost.
His eccentric fashion decisions that convinced men twice his age highlighter orange and gaudy floral-print golf shirts are appropriate style choices live on in the galleries at Quail Hollow. His name, too, echoes from the crowds in a tone largely reserved for the major winners in the field, not a player ranked 53rd in the Official World Golf Rankings.
But most pressing, it’s Fowler’s golf swing — not flashy outfits or boy band-esque shaggy locks — that transported onlookers into seeing a past version of the one-time Oklahoma State star at this week’s Wells Fargo Championship.
The Ghost of Rickie Past is in there. And it’s starting to show.
“That’s a kind of a dream finish on a day like today,” Fowler told The Observer after birdieing three of his final four holes in Saturday’s third round for a 3-under 68. “What was a so-so round as far as scoring went, that turns it into a nice day and hopefully we can kind of continue that into tomorrow.”
Fowler, 6-under on the week and sitting T20 entering the final round, occupies a strange place in the golf ecosystem. He’s been a fan favorite since he burst onto the scene a decade ago in his bright get-ups and ‘Bama bangs. He made Puma, of all brands, cool.
All the while, Fowler’s play matched his endearing marketability. He finished in the top five at all four majors in 2014 and has 12 major top 10s to his name. His resume includes wins at the 2015 Players Championship and the 2019 Waste Management Open, two of the biggest events in any given calendar year.
There are lasting impacts of such things. They showed on Saturday.
As Fowler made his way from the driving range to the practice green, a man no less then 60 and donning a fluorescent pink and blue, button-up Hawaiian shirt barked out, “Hey Rickie, who do you think I’m rooting for today?” Fowler didn’t hear (or chose not to acknowledge the query). A rhetorical question perhaps. The man followed Fowler for all 18 holes.
Another middle-aged male greeted Fowler near the putting green, donning a neon orange polo and shorts reminiscent of those Fowler has worn for years on Sundays as a nod to his alma mater. The look is certainly, well, a choice.
“Let’s have a day Rickie,” another man cheered along the ropes between the practice green and first tee.
Still, recent years have made it feel the rock star support Fowler receives outweighs what he’s actually done on the golf course. Fowler finished 125th in the FedEx Cup Points standings in 2022 — the literal last spot that ensured he’d retain his PGA Tour card. That brought significant changes to his team. He parted ways with longtime caddie Joe Skovron and brought renowned swing coach Butch Harmon on board.
Those moves have paid dividends.
Fowler is quietly on track for his best season in almost five years. He’s finished in the top 20 in seven of his last eight events. He hasn’t missed a cut since early October. He’s also played himself into legitimate contention for the 2024 U.S. Ryder Cup team.
“Gosh, Rickie is an old man now,” a volunteer hiding beneath the stadium entrance onto the first tee box opined. At 34, it does feel like Fowler has been around forever.
Saturday was a turn-back-the-clock-type day in a season that’s become increasingly chock full of vintage Fowler performances. He was patient on a round that tested his mettle. Fowler hit 11 of 18 greens in regulation, but it took until the par-5 10th for him to find the bottom of the hole with a birdie putt.
That form persisted into Fowler’s back-nine. He clobbered a 3-wood and landed a short pitch within three feet of the cup at 15. He followed that by canning a 19-foot birdie at 17. Finally, Fowler rewarded those crowding around the stadium seating at the 18th green with a flippy wedge from 144 yards, sticking his approach to just three feet.
Another birdie. Another roar for Rickie.
“This golf course tests you in all parts,” Fowler said. “You’ve got to drive it well. Approach shots have to be dialed in — and even then it’s tough to make putts on these greens with how much slope and movement there is.
“There’s a low one out there, but you’ll have to be damn near perfect.”
Stepping out from under the massive tree off the left side of the clubhouse at Quail Hollow, Fowler was greeted by a swath of autograph-seeking youths. He stuck around for 29 minutes. He signed every single item. Hats, flags, balls. All of them.
The support, the play, all of it feels reminiscent of the version of Fowler that skyrocketed to relevancy on the PGA Tour a decade ago. But this iteration of the sport’s ex-golden boy is different.
“What kind of dirt bike do you have Rickie?” a fan chimed as Fowler headed toward the locker room.
“I don’t have a dirt bike anymore,” Fowler said through wry smile.
Fowler has undoubtedly matured over his 14 years on tour (Read: no more dirt bikes). Age does that. Fatherhood, too. These days, his bag includes a tag emblazoned with his daughter’s name “Maya Fowler” on it. His mostly white outfit on Saturday was also about as understated as his clothing gets.
Despite that, there’s a lingering sentiment vintage Fowler is still there. His play proves as much. Five months into the calendar year and three days into competition at the Wells Fargo Championship, Fowler is back where he belongs — in the mix.
Maybe it’s time we all start believing in ghosts.
Wells Fargo Championship leaderboard
1 — Wyndham Clark (-16)
2 — Xander Schauffele (-14)
T3 — Adam Scott (-11)
T3 — Tyrell Hatton (-11)
T5 — Harris English (-10)
T5 — Tommy Fleetwood (-10)
T5 — Sungjae Im (-10)
8 — Brendan Todd (-9)
T9 — Corey Conners (-8)
T9 — Gary Woodland (-8)
T9 — Max Homa (-8)
T9 — Michael Kim (-8)
T9 —Adam Svensson (-8)
T9 — Justin Thomas (-8)
T9 — Nate Lashley (-8)
Fourth round pairings
7:40 a.m. — Ryan Armour, Nick Hardy
7:50 a.m. — Webb Simpson, Stewart Cink
8:00 a.m. — Justin Suh, Austin Eckroat (Canada)
8:10 a.m. — Cam Davis (Australia), Henrik Norlander (Sweden)
8:20 a.m. — Zac Blair, David Lingmerth (Sweden)
8:30 a.m. — Kramer Hickock, Callum Tarren (England)
8:40 a.m. — Alejandro Tosti (Argentina), Cameron Young
8:50 a.m. — Hayden Buckley, Joseph Bramlett
9:00 a.m. —Rory McIlroy (Northern Ireland)
9:10 a.m. — Chris Kirk, Sahith Theegala
9:25 — Keith Mitchell, Matthew Fitzpatrick (England)
9:35 a.m. — Harrison Endycott (Australia), Francesco Molinari (Italy)
9:45 a.m. — Chad Ramey, Trey Mullinax
9:55 a.m. — MJ Daffue (South Africa), Si Woo Kim (South Korea)
10:05 a.m. — Tony Finau, Stephan Jaeger
10:15 a.m. — Beau Hossler, Akshay Bhatia
10:30 a.m. — Patrick Cantlay, Denny McCarthy
10:40 a.m. — Taylor Moore, Trace Crowe
10:50 a.m. — Keegan Bradley, Ryan Palmer
11:00 a.m. — Emiliano Grillo (Argentina), Tom Kim (South Korea)
11:10 a.m. — Mark Hubbard, Jimmy Walker
11:20 a.m. — K.H. Lee (South Korea), J.J. Spaun
11:35 a.m. — Matthew NeSmith, Kevin Streelman
11:45 a.m. — Rickie Fowler, Matt Kuchar
11:55 a.m. — Dylan Wu, Doug Ghim
12:05 p.m. — Seamus Power (Ireland), Alex Smalley
12:15 p.m. — Nate Lashley, Viktor Hovland (Norway)
12:25 p.m. — Adam Svensson (Canada), Justin Thomas
12:40 p.m. — Max Homa, Michael Kim
12:50 p.m. — Corey Conners (Canada), Gary Woodland
1:00 p.m. — Sunjae Im (South Korea), Brendan Todd
1:10 p.m. — Harris English, Tommy Fleetwood (England)
1:20 — Adam Scott (Australia), Tyrell Hatton (England)
1:30 — Wyndham Clark, Xander Schaueffele
