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Alex Fitzpatrick on his incredible start to his PGA Tour career and his brother Matt Fitzpatrick role
Alex Fitzpatrick will take a one-shot lead into the final round of the PGA Tour’s Truist Championship after continuing his rapid rise with another standout performance at Quail Hollow Club. The English golfer fired a seven-under-par 64 on Saturday to move to 14-under overall, putting himself in position for the biggest individual victory of his career.
The 27-year-old has now followed his recent DP World Tour success with a breakthrough run on the PGA Tour. Fitzpatrick won the Hero Indian Open earlier this season before teaming with his older brother, Matt Fitzpatrick, to win the Zurich Classic of New Orleans, a result that secured Alex a PGA Tour exemption through the 2028 season and entry into the remaining Signature Events this year.
After Saturday’s round, Fitzpatrick credited much of his quick adjustment to the PGA Tour to the experience and guidance of his brother, the 2022 U.S. Open champion and former Ryder Cup player.
“I think having my brother around has been super helpful,” Fitzpatrick said. “I feel like he’s been and done everything that I want to do in the game, whether that’s Ryder Cup and win majors.”
GettyMatt Fitzpatrick of England and Alex Fitzpatrick of England
Fitzpatrick said being around Matt throughout his career helped prepare him for golf’s biggest stages before he officially arrived on the PGA Tour.
“Having him being around and me being there for all of that, I felt like I got a really good sense of what it takes and what the atmosphere is like,” Fitzpatrick said. “And even meeting some of the players before I even came out here was I think super helpful in settling in.”
The younger Fitzpatrick brother continued his impressive recent form with eight birdies during Saturday’s third round. His only bogey came at the par-4 16th before he immediately responded with another birdie at the par-3 17th.
Fitzpatrick enters the final round one shot ahead of Norway’s Kristoffer Reitan, who also shot 64 on Saturday. Cameron Young sits two shots back after posting an eight-under 63, the lowest round of his season.
Alex Fitzpatrick has made an incredible start to his PGA Tour career and he puts a lot of the smooth transition down to having his brother Matt around:
“I think having my brother around has been super helpful. I feel like he’s been and done everything that I want to do in the
The recent results have significantly changed Fitzpatrick’s standing in professional golf. Just weeks ago, he was still competing primarily on the DP World Tour and fighting for consistency after nearly losing his tour card last season.
Now he finds himself leading one of the PGA Tour’s Signature Events against one of the strongest fields of the year.
“I definitely think you’re more comfortable out there when you know that you’re not fighting for the card for the year,” Fitzpatrick said. “I definitely think that helps.”
GettyAlex Fitzpatrick of England
Fitzpatrick said his confidence began growing after finally breaking through with his victory at the Hero Indian Open.
“I’ve always felt like my game was in a good space this year,” Fitzpatrick said. “Especially on the DP World Tour I felt like I was playing good golf but not necessarily getting the results.”
He referenced a missed opportunity earlier this season at the Joburg Open, where he finished tied for sixth after briefly contending late on Sunday.
“Golf is a funny one,” Fitzpatrick said. “Back of my head I’m thinking I might never get another chance to win.”
That changed quickly in India, where Fitzpatrick captured his first major professional victory on a difficult golf course.
“Having that, coming over that barrier, getting the win on my back, was super helpful in pushing me forward,” he said.
Since then, Fitzpatrick has continued building momentum. He followed the Zurich Classic win with a top-10 finish at the Cadillac Championship before arriving at Quail Hollow.
Meanwhile, Rory McIlroy fell out of contention after a difficult third-round 75. The world No. 2 and four-time winner at Quail Hollow finished the day 13 shots behind Fitzpatrick after carding six bogeys.
Tommy Fleetwood and Justin Thomas remain within striking distance at nine-under, while Sungjae Im, the halfway leader, dropped back after a third-round 70.
Fitzpatrick will play Sunday’s final round alongside Reitan, a familiar competitor from the DP World Tour.
“The one thing that I kind of did a really good job today was embracing everything that’s going on,” Fitzpatrick said. “I had so much support out there, which was amazing.”
Debayan Biswas Debayan Biswas is a sports writer at Heavy Sports covering NBA, NFL, Golf, and Soccer. His work has been syndicated on Yahoo Sports, Yardbarker, Flipboard, The Sun News, and The Olympian. Previously, he contributed to Athlon Sports, EssentiallySports, and PFSN. More about Debayan Biswas
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