Fowler off to strong start in Shanghai

Ricky Fowler shot a 7-under-par 65, leaving him one shot behind Rikard Karlberg of Sweden in the HSBC Champions in Shanghai.

Rickie Fowler dropped by PGA of America headquarters in Florida with the Ryder Cup trophy last week as a way to let the employees share in the U.S. celebration. The trophy stayed behind. Fowler brought memories of Hazeltine all the way to China.

While the Ryder Cup was a team victory, Fowler’s own contributions gave him a shot of confidence going into the HSBC Champions in Shanghai.

He was solid from tee to green, attacked the par 5s and holed one last birdie putt Thursday for a 7-underpar 65, leaving him one shot behind Rikard Karlberg of Sweden, who made an auspicious World Golf Championships debut with nine birdies in his round of 64.

Fowler had never won a match in three previous Ryder Cups before teaming with Phil Mickelson in a fourballs victory in the opening session at Hazeltine. More special was Sunday, when he overcame Justin Rose in a tight match for a 1-up victory.

“For me, finding a way to get a win in a singles match was big,” Fowler said. “It’s a team victory, but I felt like I did my part to help the team. Coming out of that with a 2-1 record instead of 1-2 was important to me.”

He accompanied the gold trophy to Arnold Palmer’s memorial service, and then after emerging from a two-week break in which he didn’t set foot on a golf course, Fowler and Brooks Koepka stopped by the PGA of America with the cup.

Fowler hasn’t won since the Abu Dhabi HSBC Golf Championship in January, and his game hasn’t felt right since he lost good chances to win the Phoenix Open the first week in February and the Wells Fargo Championship in early May.

It wasn’t that far off. He just needed time to tighten some loose habits, and this summer of majors and Olympics didn’t allow for that. But coming off a big week at the Ryder Cup, “I was excited to get back into the swing of things.”

“I got some good work in last week,” he said. “It’s tough to do with how busy the summer was. It’s tough to break a little habit.”

LPGA

Amy Yang took the Sime Darby LPGA Malaysia lead, and Michelle Wie had her best score in more than a year. Lydia Ko had to fight to get back to even par in her first event since firing her caddie.

Yang shot an 8-under 63 — one off her own course record — in hot and humid conditions for a two-stroke lead over American Marina Alex. The 27-year-old South Korean player birdied all four par-3 holes at TPC Kuala Lumpur.

Wie opened with a 66, breaking 70 for only the fourth time in 68 rounds this year. Winless in 57 tournaments since the 2014 U.S. Women’s Open, she’s coming off a season-best 10thplace tie last week in China in the Blue Bay LPGA.

The top-ranked Ko birdied the par-5 18th for a 71. She had a double bogey on the par-4 second.

Charles Schwab Cup

Bernhard Langer has a left knee injury that could force him to withdraw from the PowerShares QQQ Championship, the inaugural Charles Schwab Cup Playoffs event in Thousand Oaks, California.

“I’m not sure I’ll be able to play tomorrow, but I’ll make that call at noon when my tee time is,” Langer said. “For right now, I’ve been getting treatment and trying to stay off my knee.”

Simply, the decision will come down to whether the he can hit the ball.

“I tried yesterday and it didn’t work,” Langer said. “I can’t transfer my weight. I can’t put any pressure on my left knee.”

The 59-year-old German star leads the 50-and-over tour with tour four victories and has wrapped up the season money title with $2,697,459.

“I had an MRI on Monday because I couldn’t walk properly and just had problems,” Langer said. “Obviously, haven’t hit a shot yet, haven’t been out on the course. I walked it, but I haven’t hit a shot yet because I can’t, I can’t put much pressure on my knee. Walking these hills is very difficult, especially downhill.

The top 72 players on the money list earned spot at Sherwood Country Club, the former site of Greg Norman’s Shark Shootout and Tiger Woods’ event that is now called the Hero World Challenge. The playoff field will be cut to 54 for the Dominion Charity Classic next week in Richmond, Virginia, and to 36 for the Charles Schwab Cup Championship the follow week in Scottsdale, Arizona.