Rickie Fowler thought he found something in the final round at The Open Championship last week. After struggling with his driver for most of the major tournament at Royal St. George’s in England, the 32-year-old Fowler straightened things out Sunday, finishing in style with a 5-under 65.
“That was something that was kind of holding me back from making birdies,” Fowler said. “Just needed to tighten a few things up.”
That’s exactly what Fowler did in the first round of the 3M Open on Thursday at TPC Twin Cities in Blaine. He hit 10 of 14 fairways on the way to an impressive 7-under 64. He is currently tied with Spring Lake Park native Troy Merritt for the lead.
“This golf course is fairly generous off the tee,” Fowler said. “There’s a few lakes and ponds that we just need to avoid. But other than that, it’s go attack for the most part. I think we did a good job of just managing our way around since I haven’t necessarily seen the golf course a whole lot before.”
While his driver was much improved compared to last week, Fowler’s putter is the biggest reason he’s currently pacing the field. He made 114 feet, 3 inches of putts in the first round alone and did not record a bogey.
“It was nice to see some putts go in,” he said. “That’s been another part of the game that really hasn’t helped me a whole lot the last couple years.”
That’s been especially frustrating for Fowler as his putter has long been a strength of his game. He had been hitting what he felt were good putts only to watch them die a little short of the hole.
“There’s so many variables out there,” Fowler said. “(I’m) trying to eliminate as much as possible and think more about making it and not focusing about too much on line and stuff like that. I’ve been hitting good putts, but it’s nice to see the result of the ball disappearing or not lipping out or sliding on by.”
After telling reporters earlier this week that he prefers a tournament where players have to grind out a good score, rather than a tournament where everyone is going low, perhaps a birdie-fest like the 3M Open suits Fowler after all.
“I’d sign up for a few more 64s and go from there,” he said. “It’s still challenging in its own way because even par is not necessarily a good score. You go play a tough tournament where it’s a harder setup and sometimes even is a good round of golf. You’ve got to make birdies here.”
If Fowler continues to putt like he did Thursday, that shouldn’t be much of a problem.
NEW CADDIE FOR DJ
Dustin Johnson has an unfamiliar face on his bag this week at the 3M Open after his brother, Austin, who also serves as his caddie, tested positive for COVID. TaylorMade’s Vice President of Tour Operations, Keith Sbarbaro, was on the bag instead.
Asked about the switch, Johnson commended Sbarbaro, adding that his brother will be back for the World Golf Championships-FedEx St. Jude Invitational in a couple of weeks.
“He did just fine,” said Johnson, who finished with a 1-under 70. “Maybe hit the wrong club on a couple holes. That was my fault, though, I guess.”
GOPHERS IN CONTENTION
A couple of former Gophers are in the field this week, though it’s unclear if both players will make it to the weekend. Erik van Rooyen finished the first round with a 3-under 68 to put himself firmly in contention, while Angus Flanagan finished with a 1-over 72, meaning he will be fighting to make the cut.
