Fowler trying to turn Go Time into Winning Time

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AKRON, Ohio -- He's known for mop-top hair that's more motocross than match play and those colorful clothes, always orange on Sundays, with the coordinating shoes and the flat-billed cap he famously flips backwards as soon as he signs his scorecard.

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But Rickie Fowler is more than a trend-setting marketing machine. He's a 22-year-old brimming with talent, eager for his first victory and in position to make that reality this week at the World Golf Championships-Bridgestone Invitational.

Fowler provided the fireworks at Firestone on Friday as he shot a roller-coaster ride of a 64 that included eight birdies, one eagle, four bogeys and just five pars, as well as a red-hot 30 on the front nine. He's in a four-way tie at 8 under with Ryan Moore, Adam Scott and Keegan Bradley, one stroke ahead of Martin Laird, Robert Karlsson and Jason Day.

Only two of those players are over 30, and one of those is a 41-year-old PGA TOUR rookie in Karlsson. Fowler is 22 years old while Day is 23, Bradley 25 and Laird and Moore 28.

The much-heralded Fowler, though, is the only one who hasn't won as a pro.

He came close the second time he played for pay on TOUR, losing a three-way playoff in Las Vegas on the way to earning his card without going to q-school. And as a rookie last year, Fowler twice finished second while posting seven top-10s and earning a berth in the Ryder Cup. This year, though, the laid-back Californian has only recently begun to hit his stride.

Fowler entered the final round of last month's AT&T National on the cusp, tied for the lead with Nick Watney only to tumble back into a tie for 13th after shooting 74 on Sunday. It was the second time he's shared the 54-hole lead but failed to win. Two weeks later, though, Fowler rebounded strongly with a tie for fifth at the British Open that was his best finish in seven major championship starts.

Success comes easier to some than others, though, and it's worth remembering that Fowler is still a month from his two-year anniversary since turning pro. The All-American citations he earned as a member of the Oklahoma State jauggernaut and that Ben Hogan Award may have built expectations, as did the early success on TOUR, but Fowler has learned the hard way that patience is key.

"I can't go out and force it or try too hard to win," Fowler said. "It's something that's just got to happen. It's a bit of a learning process, learning how to win on the TOUR. Some guys do it quicker than others."

Fowler has struggled to find fairways this year, ranking 165th in driving accuracy compared to 85th last year. He attributes his waywardness off the tee to the driver he cracked late last year, a club he'd used for more than two years and with which he had a considerable comfort zone. Drivers and putters are perhaps a golfer's most intimate clubs, and it took Fowler until The Honda Classic to find a a simpatico replacement.

"I'm a big believer in confidence in a club and trusting it, and sometimes it takes me a little bit of time with that," Fowler explained. "It finally started to come around, and I've been driving the ball really well lately, the past month or two. And as a result, I am playing better and in contention a bit."

This week at Firestone, Fowler's success can indeed be attributed to playing out of the fairway -- he's hit 20 of 28 -- as well as a red-hot putter. He used just 21 on Friday, one-putting 13 times. He leads the field in putting as well as distance of those made and ranks second in strokes gained with the flat stick. Oh, and did we mention that he holed a gap wedge from 110 yards for the eagle at the third hole?

"I had a couple of mistakes out there ... but a lot of positives, a lot of good things came out of today," said Fowler, who made just one par on an enormously entertaining front nine. "(I am) building some confidence going into the weekend."

Fowler knows the questions -- and the expectations -- will only be raised if he can maintain his position at the top of the leaderboard at the end of what promises to be a damp and draining Saturday. He doesn't plan to change his approach, though. He knows playing out of the fairways and not the soggy rough will be key. So will finding the range with the putter, which has cooperated so well through the first two rounds.

Most of all, though, Fowler knows he needs to let it happen if he's to be the 11th first-time winner on TOUR this year.

"I guess I haven't had really a big struggle like some guys have had prior to winning," Fowler said. "It's more something I feel like has to fall into place, not something where I can go out and try and force the issue on. I can't go out there and push myself to win. I have to do this. It's something where I just focus on playing well, something I've been doing lately, and if it's my time to win, it's my time."

Or, make that "Go time," as Fowler tweets prior to every round.