Pressure Mounts on Rickie Fowler to ‘Call It Quits’ as Latest Setback Pushes Masters Dream Out of Reach

At the 2025 Cognizant Classic, Rickie Fowler stood three shots off the lead heading into the weekend, his best position in months. It felt like the kind of stage where vintage Fowler might rise. But after narrowly missing a birdie putt on 16, a heckler’s comment from the gallery drew an uncharacteristic clapback: “That’s why you’re in the stands.” The tension was palpable and not just between player and fan, but between Fowler and the mounting weight of expectation. He closed the day with a 68, but faded to a T18 finish, missing a golden chance to gain momentum and crucially Masters points.

Fowler then missed out on the Arnold Palmer Invitational, and his abysmal 71st-place finish at the PLAYERS Championship only added to his woes. Hence, he headed into the TPC San Antonio with only one result in mind- to win. Having failed to secure Masters qualification through the Official World Golf Ranking (OWGR) or recent major finishes, a win in Texas represented his only path back to Augusta. But as it appears that chance is also slipping away.

The Rickie Fowler Tracker account on X shared the update from the Valero Texas Open, tweeting, “Bogey. DFL on a Thursday morning. I have no words.” Unfortunately, the golfer’s form sank as the round progressed. Fowler ended up scoring three more bogeys and one birdie to finish 3-over par 75 after completing his 18.

Fowler started with a bogey at the par-4 10th, not the kind of start he was looking for or needed at this time. Two more bogeys followed before he made the turn at a 3-over 39, his momentum slipping with each cautious swing. The stumble continued at the par-4 1st, where another bogey crept onto the card. He clawed one back with a birdie on the par-5 2nd, but from there, his round flatlined—seven straight pars.

Heading into the second round, he finds himself tied for 120th, well outside the projected cutline. With the 36-hole cut set to include only the top 65 and ties, Fowler faces an uphill climb on Friday—he’ll need to leapfrog a crowded leaderboard just to earn a tee time for the weekend.  Rickie Fowler’s fans have grown familiar with these performances recently and safe to say they are far from happy.

In 2025, he has failed to register a top-10 finish in the seven starts on the PGA Tour and only has two top-25 finishes to his name. In 2024, he had only one top-10 finish, but still managed to qualify for all four major championships for the first time since 2020. This year, however, barring any sort of miracle, he will miss at least one major event.

Once touted to be the next big thing in golf, the Californian is suffering from a two-year dry spell. His biggest achievement in this period is a fourth-place finish at the 2024 ZOZO Championship. He concluded the tournament with a 17-under-par 263, earning $408,000. His last win on the PGA Tour came at the 2023 Rocket Mortgage Classic.

Rickie Fowler joined the field for the ongoing Valero Texas Open, hoping to perform better than he has so far this year. With the absence of Scottie Scheffler, Rory McIlroy, and Xander Schauffele, there was a chance for him to come out on top. But it looks unlikely at the moment. This would mean he misses out on the Masters, the latest blow to his career, which has been on a downward spiral for some time.

Following his landmark win at TPC Sawgrass in 2015, bigger things were expected of him, but it has been a story of near misses and unfulfilled potential. Following his win at the PLAYERS, he continued to rack up wins, leading Rory McIlroy to acknowledge in 2018, “I have no doubt he’ll get his major. It’s not a question of if, just when.” However, despite nine top-10 finishes in majors, including a runner-up finish at the 2018 Masters, the big prize continued to elude him. In 2019, he won the Waste Management Phoenix Open, but it was followed by a winless drought of four years. So, what went wrong?

Top Comment by Ralph Dawg

Quite possibly the .most over rated golfer of all time. How many ryder cups and president’s cups has he been...more

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Fowler decided to change his swing in order to overcome the inconsistencies in his performance. But in pursuit of perfection, he lost what made him successful. His putting game, one of his biggest strengths, was gone. His iron play lost its precision, and Fowler was left scrambling to make the cuts. A decline in his form and the rise of a new wave of golfers such as Viktor Hovland and Scottie Scheffler meant he was down in the pecking order and rankings. The latest outing at the Texas Open is just another example of his struggles.

The tweet from Rickie Fowler Tracker got a lot of critical comments from the fans as they watched him struggle at TPC San Antonio.

Netizens give up on Rickie Fowler

After witnessing Rickie Fowler consistently fail on the course for so long, the fans seem to have given hope of a comeback. One even questioned the purpose of having a tracking account for him as they commented, “You’re tracking a dude who just isn’t a good golfer anymore.”

Another had some advice for what the PGA Tour pro should do next. They think “Rickie should call it quits for this year. Go see a hand specialist and a psychiatrist!!” They are suggesting that Fowler doesn’t have the wristwork or the mental capacity to compete as a professional golfer anymore. We can’t comment on the “psychiatrist” bit, but the PGA Tour pro has certainly been miserable at the Valero Texas Open 2025. His driving accuracy is at 28.57%, and he has hit greens in regulation only 50.00% of the time in the first round.

Some fans had a lot more to say about his overall gameplay. One of them mentioned, “He just is what he is, anymore. He is legally blind, wedge game has fallen off, can’t putt, caddie sucks. So many issues he needs to fix if he thinks he is going to be anywhere near competitive in the PGA.” To be fair, Fowler has been wearing glasses for quite some time now. His wedge work is quite questionable, as he scored only 55.56% in scrambling on the first day.

One of the fans focused more on Fowler’s putting and chips. They said, “Every chip is to 8-10 feet, putter is awful but every pro you watch is 100X better around the green than him, it’s unreal.” Fowler does have one of the worst strokes gained while putting. The four bogeys throughout the day further emphasize the same.

Someone also suggested to Fowler many changes if he wants to continue playing against the best. Their comment read, “I do. Change everything. Balls, clubs, and caddy or retire.” Apparently, Rickie Fowler’s Cobra kit is doing more damage than good to his game. Considering his bad performance on the green, his caddie, Ricky Romano, is not helping much either. Despite being with Fowler for nearly three years, the experienced caddie may not be a great match for him.

Meanwhile, it looks like the dip in form and comments do not affect the golfer as he remains optimistic. Fowler is focused on continuous learning and personal development, mentioning, “If you don’t grow and learn with age, then you’re going the wrong direction,” during the PLAYERS Championship. What are your thoughts on Rickie Fowler’s 2025 Valero Texas Open performance? Let us know in the comments section.