Rickie Fowler’s Special Connection to Arnold Palmer Raises the Stakes This Week

ORLANDO, Fla. — Little was made of it at the time, and for good reason. Rickie Fowler was not looking for attention.

He certainly didn’t want to boast about missing one of his favorite tournaments.

It was 10 years ago and Fowler had a scheduling issue. He wasn’t going to be able to play the Arnold Palmer Invitational due to his run-up to the Masters in 2016. But missing the event was bothering him.

He knew that Palmer’s health was not great. And he hated to disappoint the golf icon, who would pass away at age 87 six months later.

So at the urging of his then-agent, Sam McNaughton, Fowler scheduled a visit with Palmer at his Bay Hill Club to tell him the news in person, driving from his south Florida home to Orlando to meet him for lunch.

“It was probably one of the hardest things I had to do,” Fowler said Friday at Bay Hill, where he shot a second-round 69 and is on the leaderboard at the Arnold Palmer Invitational. “Felt like worse than a breakup ... to come up here and tell him that.

“He wasn't too excited. But obviously him being a player he understood and respected that I came here and told him. So it was special to have the relationship that I did with him and to be in a position now where we continue to do stuff to help out the (Palmer’s) foundation and do our little part to help continue on that legacy.”

Fowler, 37, has battled his share of on-course issues in recent times. One year ago he wasn’t eligible for the tournament—he missed it for just the second time since 2010.

He made it a goal to get back on his own and did so by finishing among the top 50 in last year’s FedEx Cup points list. That guaranteed a spot in all of the signature events this year.

Rickie Fowler — Fowler, shown here at the 2024 Masters, is hoping to qualify for a return to Augusta. | Katie Goodale-USA TODAY Network

And his 69-69 start this week has him in position to earn an invitation to the Masters. At 67th in the Official World Ranking, he’d likely need a top-4 finish in order to move into the world’s top 50, which will be the Masters cutoff following the Houston Open later this month.

“It felt pretty good. It's tough around here,” said Fowler, whose best API finish is a tie for third in 2013. “You end up, you play a lot of defense, just trying to keep the round moving forward, which pars are good. Greens are slick, firm, and it can get a little tricky with the wind here and there.”

Earlier this week, Fowler was honored by Golf Digest with its Arnie Award, given annually to a golfer who distinguishes himself by giving back.

Amy Saunders, Palmer’s daughter, was on hand for the award and noted that Fowler has previously played the event 23 times and served as an honorary tournament ambassador and co-host in 2018.

Back then there was concern about the future of the tournament, following Palmer’s passing in September of 2018. The event was later given legacy status and when it became a signature event three years ago, the tournament that began in 1979 was all but secured.

Fowler was happy to do his part. He was sporting Palmer’s famous umbrella logo on both his shirt and his hat Friday. The only thing more meaningful would be to win the event.

“This would be very high on the list,” he said “It would be a lot more special being able to get that red sweater from Arnie himself. But, no, this has always been one of my favorite events. I won a junior event back here in the day, an AJGA event. We've had chances and played well here before.

“But, yeah, this is a special one. Especially with, one, the field, but the golf course, the test, it's a grind and the guys that win here and have success here, you can't fake it around this place, you have to earn it.”

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