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Rickie Fowler returns to defend his title at the Rocket Mortgage Classic this week. Ahead of the competition, the PGA star seemed confident of navigating the Detroit Golf Club course again.
Dubbing it a 'pretty fairly simple old school golf course', Fowler noted that players don't get many opportunities to play on courses like this. He detailed his gameplan in a Wednesday presser:
"I feel like it's a pretty fairly simple old school golf course. And if you can just get to the green and it becomes a bit of who can make more pups throughout the week. And now it's fun. We don't get to play very many old school golf courses like this,” Fowler said. [02:43]
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"So it's a treat for a lot of guys who can appreciate old school golf course architecture. And it's a fun course to play and especially having good memories and coming off the win last year. And we'll see if we can reignite some stuff from then,” he added.
Furthermore, Rickie Fowler disclosed that he aims to begin with some birdies in the early rounds. He also explained that one shouldn't push too hard and keep it simple, sharing his views on how to keep the mental approach right.
"You can make bogies very quickly just as quickly as you can make birdies. So a big part of it is the mental approach. And like I said I think a big thing is just not getting ahead of yourself.”
The purse for this year's Rocket Mortgage Classic is $9.2 million. Last year, it was $8.8 million. The winner of this year's event will receive $1.656 million.
Rickie Fowler’s performance at the 2023 Rocket Mortgage Classic
In last year's opening round, Rickie Fowler birdied 14 holes followed by an eagle on hole 17 to score 67. His second round score stood at 65.
He carded nine birdies in the third round, and this astounding performance bestowed the player with a 64. In the final round, he shot four birdies, with his last coming on hole 18. He finished with a score of 68 for the round.
His total of 24-under tied with Adam Hadwin and Collin Morikawa at that point. Fowler then knocked out both the golfers to triumph in a close playoff. Taylor Moore and Lucas Glover tied for the fourth position.
Rickie Fowler hasn't had any wins in 2024. His best finishes were at the RBC Heritage and the Travelers Championship where he finished T18 and T20, respectively. With a field of top-tier golfers at the 2024 Rocket Mortgage Classic, it remains to be seen if he can prove his mettle once again this year.
