'Don’t Ask Me To Apologise For Finally Learning To Play Smart On A Sunday At The Masters' - Tommy Fleetwood On '$20m Loser' Critics

Almost everyone with an advanced knowledge of men's pro golf - and especially the man himself - knows Tommy Fleetwood is yet to win either a Major or a regular PGA Tour title on American soil. But he is getting closer.

In his past six events on the other side of the pond to which he was born, the Englishman has secured a T10, a T7, and a T3 result - the latter of which was at The Masters as he finally cracked the first page of the leaderboard at the eighth attempt.

Going back further, Fleetwood has five runner-up finishes to his name on the PGA Tour, with the most painful possibly arriving via a playoff defeat to home favorite Nick Taylor at the 2023 Canadian Open.

Still, it's not like he hasn't won at all. Far from it. The 33-year-old has eight international wins under his belt and a couple of starring roles in two Ryder Cup victories.

And it could have been even better for Fleetwood in 2019 when he battled Team Europe buddy Shane Lowry for the 2019 Open Championship at Royal Portrush. But while everyone was literally and figuratively blown backwards during disgusting weather conditions in the final round, it was the Irishman who battled on to lift his first Major by six shots.

“It almost seemed to be pre-ordained that Shane would win that week, especially after Rory (McIlroy) missed the cut," Fleetwood said. "I played great golf that week, but I ran into a wrecking ball in Shane.

“And for as much as I was gutted at not winning, I had to admit that he was a worthy winner, and a really fitting one considering it was the first time the Open had gone back to Ireland in almost 70 years."

The Southport-born player carded a final round three-over as Lowry managed to limit the damage to just one-over and finish on 15-under. American Tony Finau finished third on seven-under thanks to an impressive even-par Sunday.

Fleetwood admitted that the sting of defeat was an extremely painful one to take for a while after, but time proved to be a great healer for him in understanding that there were plenty of positives to take moving forward.

He said: “But I didn’t feel that way at the time. I couldn’t bear to watch the film of [Royal] Portrush for ages after it finished. It was only when the Covid lockdown came along that I sat down and watched the footage with the kids.

“There were so many positives to take that I told myself I should never be so hard on myself again. I gave it my best shot, and it just wasn’t meant to be."

No one can accuse Fleetwood of anything but trying his best in every event he tees it up in, and especially after the Englishman provided what was arguably the fightback of the week at the 2024 Masters.

In some of the most blustery conditions Augusta has seen in its many years hosting The Masters, Fleetwood gritted his teeth and toiled away for a one-under score through three rounds.

And it was on Sunday that the 33-year-old really proved his maturity and experience of all seven previous visits to Augusta - knitting together a wonderfully neat three-under-par 69 to shoot up into a tie for third.

Yet, for some, it wasn't enough to save Fleetwood from the stick many critics choose to beat him with.

He said: “It’s strange, because I was also proud of myself after I finished third at The Masters this year. But I got criticised because some people felt I hadn’t thrown the kitchen sink at it during the final round.

“On a course playing incredibly difficult, I shot a bogey-free 69, one of the best rounds of the day. And I get stick for it! What is that all about?

“There were a couple of birdie putts I would have loved to have taken a run at, but I’ve done that in the past and just look at my final round scores at Augusta in previous years.

“Before this, I’d made the cut six years in a row - and finished with four 74s, a 76, and a 73. And on every one of those occasions I reckon I must have given up at least two shots by trying to be too aggressive on those super-slick greens.

“And having become the first player to shoot 63 in the final round of the US Open twice, I don’t think you can say I’m not willing to attack a Major championship course if I think it’s on.

“So don’t ask me to apologise for finally learning to play smart on a Sunday at the Masters. I reckon I got every ounce out of my round this year, and a share of third represents massive progress after failing to crack the top ten in the past.”

Fleetwood's career is hardly a disappointment, with the aforementioned highlights on his C.V., but even he knows the keyboard warriors will not be pacified until either a Major or multiple PGA Tour wins are secured.

Last year, someone on social media called Fleetwood the '$20 million loser' after he became the first player in PGA Tour history to surpass the financial earnings mark without winning a contributing event.

However, in Fleetwood's eyes, there is no added pressure to break that US duck. He simply wants to keep grinding away and believes his time will come.

He said: “Every pro knows you are going to lose far more often than you win, even if your name is Tiger Woods or Jack Nicklaus. So you had better get used to it.

“But I don’t buy into this notion that second is the first loser. To me, it means you’re the guy who had the winner looking over his shoulder. You’d rather swap places, but keep putting yourself in the mix, and that is bound to happen for you eventually.

“And give me second over third any day. The same thing applies whatever your finishing position. I always bust a gut to finish as high as I can even when things aren’t going great.

“And it’s not about the money, although after I was told about the ‘twenty million dollar loser’ rubbish at Augusta, I was tempted to say they’re already out of date. Third at the Masters was worth another $1million to me, although I never even knew that until the money reached my account.”