Rickie Fowler, brimming with confidence, will be back in
his Sunday orange outfit for the final round of the Players Championship aiming
for his second successive win on tour.
Fowler enjoyed his maiden tour victory in a playoff at
Quail Hollow last week and the good vibe from that win has carried over to TPC
Sawgrass where he has attacked a brutally tough course with little sign of
tension.
On Saturday Fowler carded a six-under round of 66, the best
of the day, marred only by a bogey on the 18th where he missed a putt from
under four feet.
"I had some fun out there today. Other than bogeying
the last, I'd have to say it was a fairly perfect round," said
Fowler who is three strokes behind leader Kevin Na. Fowler's
win has increased his self-belief and that psychological boost, together with a
productive switch to a cross-handed putting grip is paying dividends, according
to his father Rod.
"He seems a little more relaxed, it is fun to see him
making some awesome shots out there, he is playing well, putting a lot better
with his cross-grip and everything is coming together," he told reporters.
"He has been so close for the last year or so, the
putts just seemed to be burning the edge, now they are finally starting to
drop," he added.
Fowler agrees that there has been no major shift in his technique
rather he is just starting to feel right.
"It's not that I'm swinging it any better or anything
like that. I'm definitely confident that I've played really well the last two
weeks prior to this and I'm finally get a few putts to drop," he said.
"It's more just things are clicking. Everything is
kind of coming together....I feel like I'm managing my way around the course
very well.
"Being aggressive when we can be aggressive, and
taking a chance here or there but nothing that's too risky.
"I'm definitely confident with the way I'm playing.
I'm hitting it well. Some good finishes obviously help with that. It's just
nice to know where the ball is going and to actually make a swing and see it go
there," he said.
Fowler wears bright orange for his final rounds, to acknowledge
his time at Oklahoma
State University
and there are already visible signs of the colour and his headgear style spreading
to the galleries.
"I love seeing it, especially the little kids running
around with my hat on that is kind of flopping around, slightly large for them.”I
get a laugh out of it and feel honored when there's 40 or 50-year-old guys that
are cruising around in all orange.”It kind of shows you that they're having
fun. They don't care what other people think. They're just out supporting and rocking
the orange."
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