Why Rickie Fowler is missing from Tiger Woods event this year

Six-time PGA Tour winner Rickie Fowler won’t play in Tiger Woods’ Hero World Challenge after a winless 2025 season

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Rickie Fowler missing out on Tiger Woods’ Hero World Challenge(Image: Getty Images)

The 20-man field for Tiger Woods’ Hero World Challenge is packed with talent, but it will be missing a six-time PGA Tour winner in Rickie Fowler.

The challenge includes World No. 1 Scottie Scheffler, who is looking for his third title in a row, fellow Ryder Cup participants Justin Rose, Patrick Cantlay and Xander Schauffele, as well as a few former champions in Hideki Matsuyama and Jordan Spieth.

Fowler, who won the Hero World Challenge back in 2017, is nowhere to be found in the field. That’s because he failed to qualify either through his play or with a sponsor invite. Three sponsor invites were given to Spieth, Billy Horschel and Akshay Bhatia, who were all top-50 in the Official World Golf Rankings when the qualification period ended after the Tour Championship.

The Hero World challenge had an exemption qualification criteria, and Fowler is nowhere near the ranking needed to qualify, as he is currently ranked 81st in the Official World Golf Rankings.

Fowler most recently finished T-7 at the BMW Championship in August, and had a lot to say about where his golf game is headed.

“I feel like things have been heading in the right direction, and I’ve been in a good spot for a few months now knowing where the game is and it’s continuing to get better,” said Fowler after the first round of the BMW Championship.

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Rickie Fowler looking ahead to 2026 season

“I know what I need to do. I need to have a solid finish and play well, but if we can keep continuing what we’ve been doing, it shouldn’t be an issue.”

Fowler was then asked to assess his game overall this year.

“Yeah, I think it’s more of a perspective thing.

“As a golfer, unless you win, the initial is that you’re always disappointed until you kind of look back and try and piece together, okay, what was good, looking back through the season, how I continued to build and how I managed the body and stuff I’ve been dealing with there and how to get better and ultimately trending into where we are now.

“Every time you fall short, you’re always disappointed as a golfer.”

The field features eight golfers who have combined to win 13 majors, including the 2025 American Ryder Cup captain Keegan Bradley.

No FedExCup points will be awarded awarded, but Official World Golf Ranking points are up for grabs.