Fitzpatrick Brothers Contending Early at Zurich, and a Win Could Change One's Career

For Alex Fitzpatrick, there are a lot of perks that come with a win at the Zurich Classic.

It only took a few friendly requests from family members for Matt Fitzpatrick to agree to partner up with his younger brother, Alex, in this year’s Zurich Classic. After an opening round of 10 under, however, it seems as though their nagging was well worth the effort. 

“He was kind of forced into it a little bit. I can't remember what I was doing but I received a text and it was like, ‘what are you doing on these dates?’ and half of me knew what it was after all the pestering. I thought we finally got through to him,” Alex said in the duo’s pre-tournament press conference.

In the first round of the Louisiana event, which starts with a best-ball format for Round 1, Alex and Matt each carded five birdies for a team score of 62. Friday, the 80 two-man teams will play foursomes, otherwise known as alternate shot. 

All of the pair’s birdies came on different holes—the ultimate recipe for success in best ball—but when asked about their excellent “ham and egging,” Matt had a rather adverse response. 

“I hate that phrase. 'Ham and egg' is so American, and we're from England,” Matt said. 

“We dovetailed,” Alex added. 

Fast start for the Fitzpatrick brothers 😤@MattFitz94 and @FitzAlex99 own the co-lead @Zurich_Classic. pic.twitter.com/nt3WvoeypW

— PGA TOUR (@PGATOUR) April 20, 2023

Alex, 24, played college golf at Wake Forest University and is a current member of the Challenge Tour, the DP World Tour’s developmental circuit. Alex’s first PGA Tour start came in 2022 at the Valspar Championship, where he missed the cut. He’s been grinding for status in Europe since, but that could change this week if the brothers win the team-format event. 

The winners of the Zurich Classic both receive two-year PGA Tour exemptions as well as invitations to the Sentry Tournament of Champions, the Players Championship and the PGA Championship. 

If Alex comes out on top this week alongside Matt—who is coming off of a win at the RBC Heritage—the course of his career will advance dramatically. 

Even if Alex and Matt don’t hoist the trophy on Sunday evening, a top-5 finish would give Alex a PGA Tour start at next week’s Mexico Open. Typically, PGA Tour events give top-10 finishers spots in the following tournament, but with the team pairs at the Zurich, that policy shifts to the top 5. At Alex’s stage, any opportunity to compete on the PGA Tour and earn FedEx Cup and Official World Golf Ranking points is highly valuable (the Zurich Classic does not award OWGR points, however.)

Matt knows what could be on the line for his brother this week, but the reigning U.S. Open champion says it hasn’t impacted his mindset heading into the tournament. 

“I don't necessarily feel like there's any additional pressure because of it. I think for me, I want him to enjoy it. I think it's a great experience for him. It's a great experience for us, for my parents. I already knew I was going to have two great weeks at Augusta and Harbour Town, two of my favorite weeks of the year, and then obviously this as an additional just makes it even better,” Matt said. 

The Fitzpatrick brothers ended the day one shot back of co-leaders Wyndham Clark/Beau Hossler and Sean O'Hair/Brandon Matthews (11-under 61). Four other teams are at 10 under.