Fowler wants to end ‘dumb mistakes’ at Augusta
AUGUSTA: Rickie Fowler recently put an end to an aggravating narrative that he could not close the deal on the PGA Tour, and he enters this week’s US Masters with sights set on seeing off another dubious distinction.
World number eight Fowler begins the year’s first major riding high after a solid start to the season in which he finally turned a 54-hole lead into a win and now wants to shed the label of being the best current player without a major title.
Fowler, whose Honda Classic victory in February was his fourth PGA Tour win, feels his recent putting form will allow him to focus on “offense” at Augusta National.
“I’m making a lot of birdies right now, and that bodes well around this golf course,” Fowler, who ranks seventh on the PGA Tour in birdies this season, told a news conference on Monday.
“If I can continue to do that here this week, a lot of birdies, maybe a couple eagles in there, that’s going to be something that’s going to be very good.”
Fowler’s opening 80 last year marked his worst-ever round at Augusta National and he went on to miss out on weekend play for the first time in six Masters starts.
But the 28-year-old American is not worried about the same fate this year.
“I just made some dumb mistakes that easily could have been avoided,” said Fowler, whose best Masters finish was a tie for fifth in 2014.
“I don’t have to play my best golf around here to get it around the golf course and still find a way to score. I know this golf course too well now to really make those mistakes that I did last year.”
In his opening round last year Fowler sent shots into the trees, found water, overshot greens, yet he is not trying to erase that round from his memory.
“It’s good to remember your bad shots and your good shots,” said Fowler. “Being that way, when you end up in a similar situation, if it’s a good one, you remember what you were thinking and go through a process and get in that same frame of mind.
“And then remembering the bad ones is also good, as well; understanding what did I do wrong there, what was I thinking, how can I think differently, how do I block, if something (negative) crept in, how do I keep that out.”
Meanwhile, Spain’s Jon Rahm will seek inspiration from the late Seve Ballesteros this week when he makes his first appearance at the Masters after a stellar start to the season.
The 22-year-old won the Farmers Insurance Open and finished second behind world number one Dustin Johnson in the WGC Matchplay to put himself in contention to become the first player to win on his Augusta debut since Fuzzy Zoeller in 1979.
Ballesteros, who claimed the Masters title twice, would have celebrated his 60th birthday on Sunday. He died of cancer in 2011 at the age of 54.
“Seve is my ultimate idol and the name Seve Ballesteros is really important to me,” Rahm told reporters on Monday. “I try to emulate a lot of things he did.”
Spaniard Jose Maria Olazabal was the last Spanish Masters winner in 1999 and he also donned the Green Jacket in 1994, the year in which Rahm was born.
“For a Spaniard, it’s hard to explain all the feelings that come to mind,” Rahm said. “It really is a place that seems to suit the Spanish character, the Spanish way of playing.”
Rahm has climbed to 12th in the world rankings and really sprung to prominence in a dramatic WGC final against Johnson last month in which he fought back from five down to lose at the last hole in the matchplay event.
“I learned that if I have a good day I can take on the number one player in the world,” Rahm said.
The muscular Rahm, who drives the ball a prodigious distance and has the shot-making skills required to win at Augusta, is not short of confidence either.
“If I didn’t think I could win the tournament, I wouldn’t be here,” he said. – Reuters