Rickie Fowler plays down rumours of LIV Golf League switch and has ‘zero plans’ to leave PGA Tour | Golf News

Rickie Fowler’s regular sponsors Farmers Insurance and Rocket Mortgage were missing from his clothing during The Sentry in Hawaii, fuelling rumours over a move to LIV Golf; Fowler insisted he is excited about his future on PGA Tour

Rickie Fowler has played down speculation over a potential move to the LIV Golf League and insists golf fans “don’t have to worry” about him leaving the PGA Tour.

The six-time PGA Tour winner has regularly been linked with a switch to the Saudi-backed circuit since it launched in 2022, with rumours increasing again when two of his long-time sponsors were missing from his clothing during the PGA Tour’s season-opening event in Hawaii.

Fowler previously had Farmers Insurance on his hat and Rocket Mortgage on his shirt, although has confirmed that the noticeable absentees were not because he has any plans to join LIV Golf and that he has full faith in the PGA Tour board.

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Highlights from the final round of The Sentry in Hawaii, the first signature event of the PGA Tour season

“You don’t have to worry about that [joining LIV Golf],” Fowler told Golfweek during The Sentry. “Seeing how much work the guys on the (PGA Tour) board, especially being around (Patrick) Cantlay during the off-season a little bit and leading up to this event, I’ve never seen a person be on the phone so much.

“These guys are pouring a lot of time and effort into it. I was on the PAC [player advisory council] last year but have tried to stay out of the way because the guys that are in there, I trust.

Rickie Fowler has confirmed he has ‘zero plans’ to leave the PGA Tour

“With Jordan (Spieth), Cantlay, Tiger (Woods) and the other guys, I’ve just trusted that we’re all going to end up in a good spot and I have zero plans to go anywhere.”

Fowler confirmed that Farmers Insurance elected against renewing their sponsorship for the forthcoming season, while Rocket Mortgage – who also sponsor the event where Fowler claimed his most recent PGA Tour title last season – could return to his shirt in future events.

Patrick Cantlay, Tony Finau and rising star Ludvig Åberg have also reiterated their commitments to the PGA Tour in recent weeks, following Masters champion Jon Rahm’s move to LIV Golf, with Fowler trying to stay away from the speculation.

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Butch Harmon believes Jon Rahm’s departure might increase the urgency of the PGA Tour to form their Framework Agreement with LIV Golf

“I don’t check social media a whole lot,” Fowler added. “I guess it’s the day and age we live in. There’s only so much you can believe or trust because anything can be put out there.

“I’m real excited for what’s coming for me and for the PGA Tour and all the time and effort these guys have been putting into it.”

Will a deal between golf’s tours get agreed?

The PGA Tour continues to have ‘productive conversations’ with the DP World Tour and Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund – who bankroll LIV Golf – over the Framework Agreement between the organisations, which was announced on June 6 and was initially intended to be concluded before the end of 2023.

“I feel for the fan,” Patrick Cantlay – one of the player directors on the PGA Tour’s policy board – said ahead of the opening event of the year. “There’s been a ton of confusion not only for players out on the PGA Tour in the last year or two, but I can only imagine for the fan at home.

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“I hope with having more of the best players play the same weeks, they know exactly which weeks are important and important to us players, and they get to see a lot more tournaments where the best players on Tour are competing against each other down the stretch on Sunday, because I think that’s what the fan really wants to see.

“I think the fan’s rooting for the attention to go back squarely onto golf and squarely onto the tournaments that are being played and to forget all of this political non-golf talk, which has consumed a lot of the energy over the last couple years.”

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