Rickie Fowler did not cash in on his 54-hole lead at the CJ Cup, an uneven final day leading to a T-3 finish at The Summit Club, but the week was still a victory for the five-time PGA Tour winner. For a man who’s spent the past few seasons stuck in neutral, a T-3 – his first such finish since 2019 – was a move forward.
“It’s definitely nice,” Fowler said on Sunday evening. “It felt good to finally hit the golf ball properly, at least most of the time, for 72 holes. A lot of quality shots, a lot of good swings this week. Drove the ball well, which set me up to play golf around this place… We did a really good job.”
The performance skyrocketed Fowler up the Official World Golf Ranking, jumping him from 128th to 82nd. And his performance pushed Fowler past a notable financial benchmark as well.
By banking a cool $US565,500 in Las Vegas, Fowler became the 24th player in PGA Tour history to amass $40 million in career earnings.
Yes, the career earnings list is a very modern list – 32-year-old Rory McIlroy, who captured the CJ Cup, is sixth in all-time earnings, with Jordan Spieth coming in at 13th and Justin Thomas at 18th – underlining how lucrative the profession has become in the past two decades. Nevertheless, it’s mighty fine company to be in, one Fowler – despite his recent struggles – deserves.
“A lot of good stuff,” Fowler said. “Obviously disappointed [not to win], but this is a big step in the right direction with where we’ve been.”
PHOTO: Alex Goodlett
