The TOUR Championship: Power Ranking the top ten at East Lake
It’s been seven months since Fowler claimed his fourth career PGA TOUR title, at February’s Honda Classic. He outlasted Gary Woodland and Morgan Hoffmann by four strokes at PGA National, and even without another victory, he’s hardly let up since.
Fowler has racked up 16 top-25 finishes in 20 starts, with ten inside the top ten. Five of those top-tens have come in his last eight starts, and he’s steadily improved his performances throughout the FedEx Cup Playoffs. Multiple times at Conway Farms, Fowler took aggressive approaches, pulling driver off the deck and getting rewarded for his efforts.
Unfortunately, Fowler doesn’t control his own fate at East Lake. At times this past week, he was projected to overtake Jon Rahm for fifth in the points, but Rahm’s T5 finish kept Fowler on the outside looking in. From sixth place, however, Fowler has nearly as good a chance as anybody, especially if he can find his way to the winner’s circle once again.
The 28-year-old Fowler’s best finish (solo eighth) came in 2014, when he came to Atlanta riding a streak very similar to the one he’s on right now. What’s different is the way Fowler is scoring, ranked second in strokes gained: putting, versus 37th three years ago.
Rickie Fowler continues to grow into his game, and the FedEx Cup title would be a fitting way to close one of his best years on Tour. Look for the former Oklahoma State Cowboy to come out guns blazing (and orange) in the season finale.