Rickie Fowler wins Rocket Mortgage Classic for first PGA Tour victory since 2019

The drought is finally over for Rickie Fowler. 

After four years without a PGA Tour victory, Fowler won the 2023 Rocket Mortgage Classic in Detroit on Sunday. He sunk a birdie on the first playoff hole to beat Collin Morikawa and Adam Hadwin after a wild finish on the 17th and 18th holes. 

Fowler's triumph came two weeks after he faltered at the U.S. Open. He led after 54 holes in Los Angeles, only to stumble on the final day and finish fifth. Then at the Travelers last week, Fowler played in the top five for most of the weekend before falling to 13th in the end. There were obvious positives from his performance, including a historic 62 score in the first round at the U.S. Open.

Both are now behind him after Fowler snatched his first win since the 2019 Waste Management Open in Phoenix.

"It's hard to really put it all into words," Fowler said. "Obviously, a lot of good stuff this year and I've been playing some really good golf. So I knew it was just a matter of time with how I've been playing." 

Things looked shaky for Fowler toward the end of the final round, though. Despite leading for most of the tournament, Morikawa and Hadwin cruised ahead on Sunday as Fowler couldn't buy a birdie.

Morikawa sank eight birdies in the final round, including one on the 17th hole that vaulted him into first. But he missed a crucial birdie putt on 18 to finish the day only one shot ahead of Fowler and Hadwin, who were playing two groups behind. Hadwin did something similar after he nailed a birdie on 17 and missed a shot for a potential tournament-winning birdie on 18. That forced a playoff with Morikawa. 

But Fowler made it a three-man race for the win with a clutch shot on the 18th. His second shot from just off the fairway set him up for a three-foot birdie putt.

Fowler continued his clutch performance in the playoff. After hitting his tee shot into the right rough, Fowler hit another incredible shot to get within 12 feet of the hole. Hadwin and Morikawa failed to birdie, setting up Fowler for the tournament-sealing putt.

Broadcast controversy

Not a lot of viewers were able to watch the wild finish to the Rocket Mortgage Classic.

The PGA moved tee times up into the early morning to avoid inclement weather in the area, which meant the leaders would start at 8:55 a.m and wouldn't be shown on CBS's live television broadcast — likely because of scheduling conflicts. So unless viewers had access to streaming services, fans would have to follow along online in order to know the results or wait until the tape delay version later in the day.

But the show must go on, and Fowler finally delivered on a Sunday after weeks — and years — of disappointment.