It’s no secret that, since his victory at the 2023 Rocket Mortgage Classic, Rickie Fowler has, somewhat, struggled for form, with the American picking up just one top 10 finish in the last 12 months.
That result came at the Grant Thornton Invitational mixed event alongside Lexi Thompson, with Fowler’s best solo finish, since his victory, coming at the Tour Championship – A tie for 16th place
Many have wondered where the drop in form could have come from and, following a first round 66 at Detroit Golf Club, scene of his first PGA Tour win in four years, Fowler has revealed that he is battling a twitch in his putting, with the six-time PGA Tour winner even going as far as to call it a “yip”.
Speaking to Golf Channel’s Todd Lewis on Thursday, Fowler stated: “I would say over the last few years I’ve dealt with a little bit of my right hand having a little bit of twitch at times, which you could call it some sort of a ‘yip’, or there’s all kind of names for it.”
Obviously, the dreaded ‘Y’ word, which is enough to send a shiver down any golfer’s spine, was picked up on by Lewis, who pushed the American further on the matter, with Fowler adding “I’m fine saying it. When people have dealt with that, it makes it tough to trust hitting good putts.
“I was hitting a lot of putts that would start on line but it was more of a speed thing. Going back to cross-handed felt like it locks my right hand and wrist a little bit more to where I was able to use that as the driver purely for the touch and feel.”
Gaining three strokes on the greens in his first round, Fowler switched putters to much success in 2023, with the 35-year-old opting for an Odyssey Versa Jailbird that took the professional world by storm throughout the year.
In 2024, especially over the last month or so, Fowler has opted to experiment with his putting grip, something that he has done regularly throughout his established career. “I was trying going back to conventional and regular length for a little, then cross-handed the last three weeks or so,” stated Fowler.
“But it just seems to have helped a little bit with feel and touch, and that’s a big thing. Obviously starting the ball on line but controlling speed is another variable when it comes to putting, so I feel like I’ve done a good job the last couple of weeks, not only hitting my lines but hitting it with the proper speed…
“I think a big part of freeing myself up and allowing myself to play better golf starts on the greens, and it helps when I’m making putts which, last week, I started to see that. I feel like when I’m putting at least up to my standards or at least average, it kind of frees up the rest of the game. So looking forward to hopefully leaning on the putter a little bit more going forward and allowing the others to kind of fall into place and see the ball-striking stats come back up.”
Following his six-under first round, Fowler fired a level-par 72 to remain at six-under-par so sits in a tie for 38th going into the weekend. His third round gets underway at 10.48am (EDT), with Fowler paired alongside Ryan Fox and Matt Kuchar.
