Rickie Fowler Rebounds — Ties For Eighth At PGA Championship

After missing The Masters, the PGA of America smiled at Rickie Fowler and gave him a special exemption into the 103rd PGA Championship.

Rickie made the most of it and his game looked like it may have turned the corner.  Fowler opened with a 71 and had a tough day on Friday, like most of the field in the high winds.  He shot 76 but over the weekend shot 69-71 to finish at one-under par, tied for eighth.

Rickie showed up with some new equipment at the season’s second major — a pair of those Phil Mickelson-style sunglasses.

Evidently they helped.

Steve Loy Had Great Message For Phil:

Steve Loy had the vision for Phil Mickelson’s future when he coached Phil at Arizona State.  Loy quit that job to become Mickelson’s manager and the two have been very close friends for 25 years.

Loy was the second person to greet Phil as he left the 18th green, right after fellow Arizona State alum Jon Rahm.

“When you don’t expect them, they are one-of-a-kind,” Loy said.  “I knew we would win a Masters. I knew he was going to win more than one major. I never dreamed he’d win The Open, and to come back and do this on this go, after we haven’t had a great two years, it’s heaven sent. This is maybe his greatest win because of the golf course, the venue, the odds against him.

It’s breathtaking. I told him in a text this morning, I said, “Phil, I’m getting too old for this, but you aren’t. Let’s get it done.” That’s all I wrote to him this morning.

Huge Payday For Lefty:

Speaking of Steve Loy, he’s overseen Phil’s career path and the two are now heavily involved in golf course ownership.

Lefty has plenty of dough to by more.  His payday Sunday for winning the PGA was a whopping $2,160,000.

Brooks Koepka and Louie Oosthuizen each took home $1,056,000.

Final Round Stats For Phil, Brooks:

Brooks Koepka had a difficult day.  He hit just 10 of 18 greens, seven of 14 fairways and had 29 putts.  Mickelson hit seven of 14 fairways, 12 of 18 greens and putted 26 times.  Big shot of the day for Lefty came at the par three fifth where he pitched in for birdie from the sandy waste area left of the green.  It set the tone for the rest of the round.  Mickelson’s incredible short game was on full display Sunday.

Phil Remains Driven:

Tough to imagine Phil’s level of motivation at his age but it’s there.

“My desire to play is the same,” he said after his win.  “I’ve never been driven by exterior things. I’ve always been intrinsically motivated because I love to compete, I love playing the game. I love having opportunities to play against the best at the highest level. That’s what drives me, and I think that that’s what is—the belief that I could still do it inspired me to work harder.”

Rahm, Morikawa Amazed By Mickelson:

Jon Rahm knows Phil well, they’re both Arizona State guys and Rahm was there in the crowd, waiting for Phil as he walked off the 18th.

“His enthusiasm is what keeps him going; at his age, has the same enthusiasm I have at 26, and he’s been doing this a very long time,” Rahm pointed out.  “I mean, he’s been on Tour as long as I’ve been alive. For him to keep that willingness to play and compete and practice, even when he hasn’t been working, it’s truly admirable.”

Collin Morikawa, the 2020 PGA Champion, is still shy of his 25th birthday, said he can only hope he’ll feel the same fire in 25 years.

“To see what he’s doing—I mean, that’s amazing,” he said. “And to see him (Phil) just wanting to keep getting better, wanting to learn, I hope when I hit that age I’m still trying to do that, trying to get better. You can just see it in his eyes that he wants to win, and nothing is really stopping him.”

Phil Mickelson A Player On U.S. Ryder Cup Team?

United States Ryder Cup captain Steve Stricker, who finished tied for 44th at the 103rd PGA Championship, now has something to think about.

Will he pick Phil Mickelson to play on the U.S. team?

Oh, geez, I don’t know,” Stricker said on the even of the final round of the possibility of making Mickelson a captain’s pick.  “If he were to go on and win here and continue to play some great golf –but he hasn’t played really all that well up to this point, spurts here and there.”

Paddy Harrington Ties For Fourth at Age 49:

Lost in the hullabaloo of Phil Mickelson’s record-setting victory Sunday was the fact that Paddy Harrington, the European Ryder Cup captain, finished fourth with a 69 on Sunday that followed round of 71-73-73 he finished in a group with some of his players — Shane Lowry and Paul Casey.

Harry Higgs Earned Spot in 2022 Masters:

Harry Higgs will make the drive down Magnolia Lane next April.

Higgs tied for fourth at the PGA Championship, making it into the group of four at two-under par thanks to a final round 70.

Higgs, a social media darling, is the Tour’s self-proclaimed “Big Beautiful.”