Expand / Collapse search
Watch TV
Menu

This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. ©2024 FOX News Network, LLC. All rights reserved. Quotes displayed in real-time or delayed by at least 15 minutes. Market data provided by Factset. Powered and implemented by FactSet Digital Solutions. Legal Statement. Mutual Fund and ETF data provided by Refinitiv Lipper.

SPORTS

Fowler to play next week in Ryder Cup bid

Associated Press
Published | Updated
  • d141923b-
    Image 1 of 2

    Rickie Fowler of the United States waves after making his putt on the ninth green during the second round of the men's golf event at the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, Friday, Aug. 12, 2016. (AP Photo/Chris Carlson) (The Associated Press)

  • c66569b6-
    Image 2 of 2

    Rickie Fowler of the United States hits the ball from the second fairway during the second round of the men's golf event at the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, Friday, Aug. 12, 2016. (AP Photo/Alastair Grant) (The Associated Press)

RIO DE JANEIRO – Rickie Fowler isn't showing much of a game at the Olympics. He plans to give himself an additional chance to impress Ryder Cup captain Davis Love III by playing next week in the Wyndham Championship.

Fowler let another good round get away Friday at Olympic Golf Course with three straight bogeys on the back nine that made him settle for a 71. He was tied for 50th in the 60-man field, 14 shots out of the lead with two rounds to play.

Asked if he was going to play on the PGA Tour next week, Fowler held up his hand and pulled out his phone. Before a small group of reporters, he put on Twitter, "See you guys next week" at the Wyndham Championship in North Carolina.

The top nine players automatically qualify for the Ryder Cup team in two weeks after The Barclays. Fowler has slipped to No. 12, and while Love gets four captain's picks, the three guys ahead of him are Matt Kuchar, Brandt Snedeker and Bubba Watson.

Fowler said he had planned after the PGA Championship, where he tied for 33rd, to play the Wyndham, even if he had won the gold medal.

"Main reason, obviously it would be nice to get some more FedEx Cup points," said Fowler, who is No. 29 on that list. "But my commitment to the Ryder Cup and wanting to be a part of that team ... the Ryder Cup and the experiences I've had there, it's the best team event there is in golf. I don't want to be left off that team, so I want to go there and try and get myself some points."

Fowler is No. 8 in the world ranking and didn't imagine being in this position at the start of the year.

He won in Abu Dhabi against the strongest field on the European Tour, and then appeared to have the Phoenix Open won until he gave up a two-shot lead with two holes to play and lost to Hideki Matsuyama in a playoff.

Fowler missed the cut in the Masters, U.S. Open and The Players Championship, and he finished out of the top 30 in the other two majors, worth double points.

He was the first PGA Tour rookie to be picked for the Ryder Cup in 2010, and he played in the 2014 matches at Gleneagles. But he hasn't shown enough form to be considered a lock to be a pick if he doesn't make the team.

"I don't want to assume anything," Fowler said. "I would want Davis to pick me because he thinks I deserve a pick. I want to go and play well and earn some points. Yeah, I don't want him to think I'm just assuming I'm getting a pick, and I'm not assuming that I'm getting one, either. I want to go earn my spot."

Fowler has not won a match in his two Ryder Cup appearances, going 0-1-2 at Wales and 0-2-3 at Gleneagles. He has yet to play a Ryder Cup on home soil. The matches this year start Sept. 30 at Hazeltine in Minnesota.