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Rickie Fowler sheds light on the real issue behind his 2025 season slump.

Rickie Fowler’s 2025 season was marred by a stretch of constant bad performances. Of the 21 events he played, he made the cut on 18 and of those, only three times did he manage to get inside the top 10. He was able to turn around his performance only during the last weeks of the season.

He has already reached that number halfway through the season in 2026. Fowler is currently ranked 30th on the FedEx board. After carding a second-round 63 at Quail Hollow, he revealed what was bothering him last year.

“Left shoulder,” he said on Friday. “Stuff I had dealt with since basically high school and college. But it flared up early in the year. Sometimes I would have something, it would flare up for a little bit, maybe a week, go away. It just never went away and kept getting worse.”

Fowler suffered a major motocross accident that ended his riding career just before high school, making him completely stick with golf. He shattered his left heel in the fall. But he clarified that the accident wasn’t the cause but rather his own swinging style.

“I tried to manage it the best I could through the year. Then once I got time off, I was able to do some ACP injections just to help get it to chill out and calm down,” he added. “So I’ve been in a lot better spot after that…I guess September and was able to get some work in later in the fall.”

Rickie Fowler Climbs Inside Top 10 Before Moving Day at Truist Championship

GettyRickie Fowler looks on during the second round at Truist Championship.

Fowler finished the first round of the Truist Championship with a score of 3-over par. His 8-under performance on Friday really turned the tables. Turns out, he was actually dealing with a sinus infection on Thursday. His body was not helping him on the course.

“I was battling a bit of a sinus infection early in the week. Tuesday night, Wednesday night, probably 102, 103,” he expressed. “I was a little loopy and didn’t quite feel like my head was in the right spot on my body. So tried to fight through yesterday the best I could.”

Fowler looks quite good, just one week away from the PGA Championship. He recorded back-to-back top-10 finishes starting at the RBC Heritage. This momentum could do wonders for him next week after missing the cut in the major last year.

Off-Court Rickie Fowler Recently Partnered With Tropicana

Fowler recently found a new partner in the fruit beverage brand Tropicana. Building on his orange obsession, which ties to his collegiate years at Oklahoma State, he launched a new competition for the fans. Keeping orange juice as the base, fans need to submit recipes for a good cocktail. The winner will receive a decked-out orange beverage cart.

“Tropicana’s been doing orange for quite a bit longer than I have,” the 37-year-old said to Sports Illustrated. “Orange has always been a staple for me, especially on Sundays, but with the Oklahoma State background. So to finally have this partnership come together, it just seemed like something that was meant to happen.”