Rickie Fowler capped off his 2018 U.S. Open in style, not only shooting a 5-under-par round of 65 but setting history in the process.
On Saturday, Fowler had himself a truly awful third round at Shinnecock Hills, carding a 14-over-par round of 84. Like most of the field, he fell victim to conditions that made the course unplayable.
Thanks to a never-give-up attitude (and some help from the USGA, which did what it could to fix the issues overnight), Fowler’s 19-stroke improvement from Saturday to Sunday proved to be the biggest from Round 3 to Round 4 any golfer has achieved at this tournament.
Rickie Fowler had the biggest improvement from R3 to R4 in U.S. Open history (19 strokes) and tied the best in any round by finishing 84-65. Others at 19 (all from R1 to R2):
Earl Puckett, 93-74, 1965
Rufus King, 91-72, 1938
Tom Cooley, 97-78, 1932
H. Beveridge, 102-83, 1908— Mike O'Malley (@GD_MikeO) June 17, 2018
This remarkable turnaround moved Fowler (at least temporarily) into a tie for 31st. He finished the 2018 U.S. Open with 291 total strokes, good for 11-over par.