Rickie Fowler reveals what he did with Butch Harmon in order to win again

Rickie’s Fowler’s win at the Rocket Mortgage Classic last week will be remembered as one of the most popular.

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Fowler’s first victory since the 2019 Phoenix Open brought an end to a period of four years where he fell from the world’s top-10 down to the bottom 150 at one point.

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His return to form at the same time that his good friend Jason Day did, almost exactly when he finished the year outside the top 100, was a good thing. He or his fans will never forget that three-man playoff.

Fowler spoke with Smylie K. shortly after his incredible win. He discussed the changes Butch Harmon and he had made to Fowler’s swing and what he thought when he realized he was still in contention on Sunday.

Fowler said he had been confident in his game throughout the week until Sunday, when he took the lead.

He said, “I felt more nervous, more antsy going into the round on Sunday in Detroit, at Rocket.” “I was very happy with the golf course in LA. I felt very comfortable there. I was hitting irons well. I drove well enough all week to have the opportunity to use my irons. Butch said that the irons were not as tight. The irons were not as tight.

“For some strange reason, Sunday [at Rocket Mortgage], I was a bit antsy and anxious. I just wanted to settle down. It was more than that. I had just started out on the range, and was just feeling it. It was a positive experience. You want to be there. Just talked to Brett. I’ve worked with him on the mental aspect. I got to talk to him as I was putting before I went to the tee .”

Fowler has been back with Harmon, who was his coach from mid-2010s until he sacked Tillery. It’s not even nine months since he did so.

Even though Fowler spent some time to get used to his new swing, the process was relatively quick.

“I think the biggest step for me was to have a chance to speak with Butch, and then start working on a few things before Napa” (Fortinet Championship). Fowler confessed on the podcast that he went to Napa with a feeling of, I wouldn’t call it discomfort, but I wasn’t comfortable because the swing felt foreign.

“I went to the course and I continued to exaggerate and trust as much as possible while playing. When you are actually on the course, it is harder to exaggerate. The first step in building confidence was to see the results. I also got feedback on how tight my lines were. I didn’t do well in Vegas but finished second in Japan and in the final group. This was just the beginning. That gave me something I could work on in our offseason, to continue to grind. That’s why I was able to move to the West Coast and then from there .”

Kaufman asked, “Have you all worked on the same stuff for the entire time?”

Fowler said, “Yeah for the most part.” “Some different feelings here or there, but ultimately cleaning the takeaway for that first parallel and getting …”

The PGA Tour’s most recent winner explained his main concern.

He demonstrated that his tendency was to let the club slip out of his hands. It’s difficult to maintain the club in front of you, and have it at the top. I would often be on the outside, and then it would tip over in terms of being laid off .”

The host asked, “So,” “Just felt behind?” You felt like you were always behind or that you had to play catch-up ?”

Fowler admitted, “Yeah it was.” “I’d say that the area where I always sat felt comfortable in a sense, because it was where I always sat. The club was closer to the bottom line when I got into a steeper plane with my left arm.

Rickie Fowler will be at the Scottish Open in Scotland, a tournament he won back in 2015. He will then be all guns blazing to try and win his first major at Hoylake where he tied for second in 2014.

It would be hard to ignore his claims, especially with previous Open Championship finishes in the second, fifth, and sixth places, as well as his confidence.

Listen to the complete podcast here.

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