Rickie Fowler returned to the Masters after three years and scored a victory on Wednesday. Fowler, with his wife Allison on the bag, and daughter Maya on his side, won the Par 3 championship. The six-time PGA Tour winner shot 5-under 22 in the nine-hole contest. It’s “something special”, admitted Fowler. But the great Wednesday moment might also have ‘jinxed’ his shot at the Green Jacket. 

Historically, no golfer has been able to translate the Wednesday triumph to Sunday glory. Sam Snead, the first winner of the ceremonial event in 1960, tied for the 11th spot after the final round. Can Fowler lift the curse? Previous records, coupled with his season-long performance don’t exactly raise the spirits. 

Rickie Fowler needs to become the trailblazer

The best performance for a par 3 championship winner is Ray Floyd’s runner-up finish in the 1990 Masters. Chip Beck also finished second in the 1993 Masters after winning the Par 3 Championship, stats guru Justin Ray tweeted. Par 3 Championship winners of the last few years haven’t had a stellar record on the Masters leaderboard. 

Last year, Tom Hoge missed the cut after winning the Par 3 championship. A year before, Mike Weir failed to carry the momentum beyond Friday. Mackenzie Hughes, the joint winner that year, finished T29. The best finish of a Par 3 championship winner in the last ten years came from Kevin Streelman in the 2015 Masters. The 45-year-old tied for 12th. 

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However, Rickie Fowler has three top-10s in Augusta from his last seven appearances. The Oklahoma State University alum missed his maiden Green Jacket by one shot in 2018 to Patrick Reed. Nevertheless, Fowler once again made it to the top 10 the next year. But let’s not forget that the six-time PGA Tour winner has struggled on the greens this year. 

Rickie Fowler missed cuts in three PGA Tour events. His best finish came at the Genesis Invitational-T35. In his last appearance before the Masters, Fowler failed to make the cut at the Valero Texas Open. Interestingly enough, Fowler is buoyed by hopes of a revival, as the Jupiter resident saw the victory as a good omen.

The curse has to break at some point, Fowler believes

Rickie Fowler couldn’t ask for a better way to start his Masters campaign. “Great way to start — I guess not start of the week; been working at it the last few days…  The jinx was meant to be broken at some point,” said Fowler after lifting the Crystal Bowl, which he looks to upgrade to the sliver replica of the Augusta Clubhouse by the end of this week. 

Rickie Fowler played alongside Jordan Spieth. Their kids were dressed in the white boiler suit typical of caddies in Augusta National. Fowler. The highlight was Sammy Spieth and Maya Fowler racing to the green on the par 4, 1st hole, Tea Olive. Fowler will tee off with Patrick Cantlay, and Min Woo Lee at 10.06 am EDT on Thursday and at 1.12 PM on Friday.

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