Rickie Fowler has made another big change as he looks to turn around his luck.
Fowler has gotten rid of his swing coach John Tillery. Tillery confirmed the news to ESPN’s Mark Schlabach for a story published on Tuesday.
“Man, I love the guy,” Tillery told ESPN. “This job will punch you in the gut sometimes. As a coach, there’s nothing better than watching your guys succeed, and nothing worse than watching them struggle. The X’s and O’s of what they need to do is the easy part, but getting it done can be a challenge sometimes, and we didn’t get it done. I’m pulling for him and wish him nothing but the best.”
Fowler told Golfweek there were no hard feelings towards Tillery.
“I couldn’t love the guy any more, and we gave it a good run but it was almost like speaking another language in a way and it never really clicked,” Fowler told Golfweek. “He’s had plenty of success with his guys and I wish I would have played significantly better. I’ll take a lot out of the time we spent together. It’s not like the last few years were for nothing. I gained a lot of knowledge and I feel like I’m in a very good spot.”
Fowler had worked with Tillery for over three years.
The change by Fowler comes shortly after he made another change to his support staff. The 33-year-old fired longtime caddie Joe Skovron last month.
Perhaps no golfer has seen a bigger — and swifter — drop in their play in recent years than Fowler. Ranked as high as No. 4 in the world in 2016, Fowler is currently ranked 178th. A top-5 finisher in all four majors in 2014, Fowler only participated in one major this year. He has only made one top-10 at a major over the last three years.
