Tommy Fleetwood is a winner on the PGA Tour for the first time in his career. The fan-favorite still has more to prove.
Tommy Fleetwood turned professional in 2010 at just 19 years old on the European Tour (now the DP World Tour) after becoming a top three rated amateur golfer in Europe. Since joining the PGA Tour in 2018, the Englishman has played to a very consistent level in every statistic. Fleetwood was made into a sensation due to his fluid, technical golf swing that many amateurs and pros alike try to replicate. This action that produces such a mesmerizing golf swing has brought him a great amount of success in professional golf.
His success on the DP World Tour has given him credibility when he made the transition to the PGA Tour. Although Fleetwood has proven he can win amongst highly touted professionals in the field, he struggled to break the ice at the highest level. There is a short list of professionals that have as many top five finishes as Fleetwood in the same number of starts on the PGA Tour. From solo lead, to agonizing defeat, Fleetwood’s cycle felt never-ending, but he is not one to shy away from falling short. He carries himself with such confidence and brightness, along with an infectious personality, that makes him a true fan favorite.
Talent All Around
After making the cut in his first DP World Tour event in 2010, Fleetwood secured a spot in a few events in the Challenge Tour for 2011. He would collect his first professional victory that year, at the Kazakhstan Open, earning him a spot in the DP World Tour for the 2012 season. His first win on the DP World Tour came in 2013, at the Johnnie Walker Championship at Gleneagles, launching him up the World Golf Rankings. Four more years of playing on the DP World Tour led to Fleetwood’s second win on the Tour, at the Abu Dhabi HSBC Golf Championship in 2017. He would end up winning the season-long Race to Dubai on the DP World Tour, granting him PGA Tour access for 2018.
In Fleetwood’s first full season on the PGA Tour, he only missed one cut in 15 starts. Along with multiple top ten finishes, he finished as the runner-up at the U.S. Open to Brooks Koepka. Where Fleetwood really came into his own was during the 2018 Ryder Cup in France. In his debut for the Europeans, he played a major role in solidifying their 17.5-10.5 victory over the Americans. When playing with his partner for the four-ball and foursome matches, Francesco Molinari, he was dominant. Fleetwood and Molinari finished 4-0 in those matches, becoming the first European pair to go undefeated in team matches. In three Ryder Cup appearances, Fleetwood accumulated 7 wins, 3 losses, and 2 ties, totaling 8 points.
Since making his way into the PGA Tour, he has collected 45 top ten finishes, 31 top five finishes, and 12 top three finishes, all without securing a solo victory.
Close but no cigar
In the 2025 season, Tommy Fleetwood has held the 54-hole lead three times and has lost two of the three.
At the Travelers Championship in Cromwell, Connecticut, Fleetwood ended the third round at a total of 16-under and in the lead. Right on his tail was the American Ryder Cup captain Keegan Bradley and Russell Henley at 13-under. On Sunday, Fleetwood started off terribly slow, bogeying three of his first four holes to start 2-over. Fleetwood and his putter were not on the same page, as he missed many chances to gain strokes on Bradley. Then on the 18th hole, Fleetwood decided on a club change in the fairway that would cost him. He took a club less and hit his approach 50 feet short. He would end up three-putting for bogey while Bradley stuck it close and knocked in a birdie. Fleetwood walked off the green in despair after another second-place finish.
The FedEx St. Jude Championship was another opportunity for Fleetwood take home his first victory. He was on a roll Saturday in Memphis, holding on to a three-shot lead before a two-shot swing with Justin Rose. He led by one going in the final round. His front nine on Sunday began with a bogey, then he made par on the following eight holes while others crept up. His playing partner, Justin Rose birdied holes 14-17 to take the lead, while Fleetwood bogeyed hole 17 to put him two shots back. All hope was lost for Fleetwood as he drove his ball into a bunker on hole 18 and basically gave the tournament away.
It seemed that all hope was lost for Fleetwood, but he would never go down without a fight. Two weeks later at Eastlake Golf Club, the Tour Championship was his stage.
Lifted
Like many times this year, Fleetwood had his best stuff at Eastlake for the Tour Championship. Right out of the gates, he fired a 6-under 64 to put himself in a tie for third place after day one. Fleetwood stepped it up as the weekend drew near, rounding out the week with a 7-under 63 to move into a tie for first with Russell Henley.
When Saturday’s play began to heat up, players like Patrick Cantlay and Keegan Bradley made their move. Bradley shot 63 and Cantlay shot 64, which put him into a tie for first with Fleetwood going into Sunday.
Paired together on Sunday, Fleetwood and Cantlay started the first three holes very differently. Fleetwood gained a three-shot advantage on Cantlay by making birdie on hole 2, and Cantlay going 2-over in the first three. Fleetwood stayed consistent throughout the round, never going below a two-shot lead on the field.
This Tommy’s Moment, as he walked up the 18th fairway to his ball on the green, the cheers rained down. A full-circle moment for a fantastic golfer who has been through it all on the course. As he tapped in his putt to become victorious, the crowd erupted, and all he could do was smile. An unforgettable moment for one of the most down-to-earth professional athletes the sports world has seen. Fleetwood took home the $10 Million, and he left the seemingly immovable burden in the dust at Eastlake Golf Club. Tommy is free; And who knows what he will accomplish next with the flood gates now open.
He will make his fourth Ryder Cup appearance for Europe in Bethpage, New York beginning on September 27th.
