2012 Wells Fargo Championship: Rickie Fowler's Best Performance of Young Career

Rickie Fowler's first ever PGA tour win, which came today at the Wells Fargo Championship, was impressive in its own right, but what was more impressive was how he did it.

Coming into Sunday, Fowler, at sixth place, was 11 strokes under par and three shots off the lead. Victory was certainly within his reach, but this isn't vintage Tiger in a red shirt we're talking about.

Big Sunday comebacks are possible, just not likely. Throw in the fact that guys like Rory McIlroy and Webb Simpson were in front of him, and you have a result that no one, except maybe Fowler, expected.

But Fowler, on a day where many of the leaders struggled, kept his cool despite being a 23-year-old with just one other professional win on the OneAsia Tour. 

Webb Simpson, Ryan Moore and Nick Watney all succumbed under the pressure, shooting final rounds over par and falling out of contention.

Even Rory McIlroy, the No. 1-ranked golfer in the world, bogeyed on hole No. 17 to drop him into a tie with Fowler, who rode a three-under day into the three-way tie.

But that was surely where the magic would end, right? It was a fantastic day as Fowler defied most of the odds to make a playoff with McIlroy and D.A. Points, but there was no way he would somehow upend McIlroy head-to-head, right?

Right?

Wrong.

Fowler birdied the first playoff hole while McIlory and Points pared, thus giving the young golfer the fantastic win. 

Amazing. He puts together a terrific final round while better golfers around him are dropping like flies and then he beats arguably the best golfer in the world on a playoff hole. Not only did Fowler establish himself as an up-and-coming star, but he proved he has the chops to perform in clutch time. 

Fowler has had some other impressive performances throughout his short career, such as a fifth-place finish at the Open Championship and a second-place finish at the Bridgestone Invitational, but neither of those compare to today.

Congratulations, Rickie. You've arrived. Now you can shave that Adam Morrison-esque mustache.

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