Despite a solid FedEx Cup ranking hovering around 50th, Adam Hadwin was losing his cool on the course.
For nearly six weeks the product of Abbotsford, B.C., was getting frustrated when he played, even as he got solid results like a tie for 12th at the RBC Canadian Open on June 11. He finished 59th at the U.S. Open the next week and in the ensuing break he decided to get out of his own way and just have fun.
The result? A tie for second at the Rocket Mortgage Classic in Detroit on Sunday, losing to eventual champion Rickie Fowler in a playoff.
"I tried to just go out and play golf. If I finished 30th, I finished 30th. If I missed the cut, I missed the cut," said Hadwin, who is now 35th in the PGA Tour's rankings. "It's not going to change the fact that I'm working hard and I'm doing a lot of good things.
"I have to try and find the joy in some of that and get off the results a little bit. And sure enough, one week into trying that I played some of my best golf of the year."
Hadwin's season-high ranking FedEx Cup ranking was 33rd after a tie for 10th at the Shriners Children's Open on Oct. 9. After missing the cut at the RBC Heritage on April 16 he got as low as 68th but bounced back the next week with a second-place finish at the Zurich Classic of New Orleans.
Since then, Hadwin has stayed within range of the 50 spot but he still wasn't enjoying himself as he played. So during the break he took following the U.S. Open he rested physically and tried to find a new perspective.
"It allowed me to step back and view the bigger picture and convince myself that 'look, I've been playing some actually pretty decent golf, I can't be nearly as bad as what it feels at times," said Hadwin. "Otherwise, the statistics and my placing in the FedEx Cup wouldn't be where it's at.
"So I think the off week came at a good time, and allowed me to refresh a little bit and take a step back and view the bigger picture a little bit more."
Hadwin shot a 66-68-63 to play in Sunday's final group with Fowler and Taylor Pendrith of Richmond Hill, Ont. Hadwin strung together a bogey-free 5-under round, including birdies on the par-3 15th hole and par-5 17th hole at the Detroit Golf Club.
That forced a playoff with Fowler and Collin Morikawa. Fowler birdied the par-4 No. 18 in the sudden-death round to win it all but Hadwin has no regrets.
"I made everything that I should have made and then I added in a few longer ones that I probably had no business making," said Hadwin with a chuckle. "All week I was happy, I was smiling.
"I enjoyed being out there, which I really haven't done for a few weeks. I was enjoying the game again, which was nice."
All Hadwin has to do is keep that positive attitude going forward, starting with this week's John Deere Classic at TPC Deere Run in Silvis, Ill. Canadian Open champion Nick Taylor, who is also from Abbotsford, joins him in the field with Adam Svensson of Surrey, B.C., and Michael Gligic of Burlington, Ont.
"It's obviously easier said than done, right?" said Hadwin. "Like, I did it one week when I played good golf, the difficult thing will be to try and maintain that attitude when things maybe aren't necessarily going my way. That'll be the real test.
"It's easy to smile and laugh and have a good time when you're shooting 24-under par. We'll see, but, I mean, it's hard to hard to knock the result, at least for the first week anyway."
This report by The Canadian Press was first published July 4, 2023.
John Chidley-Hill, The Canadian Press
