14 Years Before His Open Heroics, a Brewing Rivalry Between Rickie Fowler and Brian Harman Assets the PGA Tour Pro’s Insane Dominance

The 2023 Open Championship has officially entered its final round. The last three thrilling and action-packed days have had many incredible moments featuring numerous golfers. However, undeniably, Brian Harman and his A-game have been the highlight of the fourth golf major. Currently, the golfer sits comfortably on top of the leaderboard with a five-shot lead over Cameron Young.

While Harman had not been among the elite players on the PGA Tour with a major win, his strategic gameplay in Hoylake is aiming toward it. Although, before he executes to clinch that victory on Sunday, there is another triumph of the golfer that has been legendary in its bearing. This achievement, surprisingly, also featured the PGA Tour star—Rickie Fowler. It portrayed the persona of the golfers before they made up their minds to become professionals.

Rickie Fowler and Brian Harman’s illustrious face-off in 2009

Once upon a time at the 2009 NCAA Championship, the two PGA Tour pros competed against each other as amateur golfers. It was the first time the title was decided based on match play. So, it happened that the Bulldogs, the No.1 seed, and nation-ranked No.1 team, Oklahoma State battled against each other.

While the former’s top-ranked player was Brian Harman, OSU’s No.1 golfer was Rickie Fowler. This produced circumstances such that the match between the two was a deciding one. Initially, Fowler took up the lead on the 14 holes that were to be played. Soon came the 16th hole, the Californian native executed a brilliant birdie. But, a similar score was garnered by Harman as well.

And from there, Harman went on to collect another birdie. This eventually led to a heated face-off on the 18th hole. On one hand, Fowler missed the last hole. On the other hand, the 36-year-old did not make that mistake and handed over a defeat to the Golf Rockstar. Fowler currently sits on the T24 berth at the Open in Hoylake.

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Zipping back to his 2009 performance, Brian Harman expressed that he doesn’t know what transpired over the last three holes. However, he said to himself, “I am ready to win this match now.” Maybe, he carried the same attitude to the 151st Open Championship as well. Considering, how dominant his current form in England has been!

With dominant putting and a fierce attitude, Brian Harman aims for his first major win

In 12 years as a professional golfer, Brian Harmon has only won twice on the PGA Tour. First, it was the 2014 John Deere Classic, and then an impressive win at the 2017 Wells Fargo Championship. However, none of the professional years witnessed the 36-year-old claiming a major tournament title.

This season, the last men’s golf major could be Harmon’s chance of finally achieving this feat. His feisty performance on the greens is already pointing toward a promising end to the golf major. Although, ultimately, it will be how well he executes his strong putting skills in the final round of the game.

The first two days of the game have already set up the golfer’s name among the likes of Tiger Woods and Rory McIlroy. His resilient gameplay allowed him to reach a tally of 132 through 36 holes. Now, the golf world will be eagerly looking forward to a stellar end to such a dominant performance; one that will be more memorable than the win at the 2009 NCAA Championship.

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What do you think of the on-course rivalry between Rickie Fowler and Brian Harman during their amateur days? Let us know in the comments below.