The Fitzpatrick brothers partnered up to win the Zurich Classic team event on the PGA Tour, shooting a one under-par 71 in the foursomes on Sunday at TPC Louisiana – following a betterball record round of 57 on Saturday – to complete a one-shot victory.
While the win added to their incredible success in recent weeks – with Matt winning both the Valspar and RBC Heritage on the PGA Tour and Alex winning his maiden DP World Tour title at the Hero Indian Open – it also earned Alex a PGA Tour card.
“To win a team event on the PGA Tour with my brother – I don’t know if it does gets better than that,” said 31-year-old Matt. “That’s how special it feels. To get in over the line the way we did and to hang in there on the back nine is incredible.”
The Yorkshiremen finished with a 31 under-par total, a new tournament record, despite losing a four-shot lead on the back nine. They got the job done when Matt hit a bunker shot on the par five 18th to 1ft. Alex, 27, smiled and put his hand on his head as he went to mark the ball, knowing that all he had to do to earn a two-year exemption on PGA Tour was tap it in. As his putt dropped, he crouched and put one hand over his face, then rose to embrace his older brother.
“I couldn’t feel my hands. I couldn’t feel my legs. I couldn’t feel anything,” said Alex after holing the winning putt. “It’s a pretty life-changing thing.”
With the win, Alex earned a PGA Tour card through the 2028 season as well as places in the rest of the Signature Events this year, the PGA Championship, and The Players Championship in 2027.
“Winning on the DP World Tour [in India] was the first time that I had an exemption for over a year,” added Alex. “It’s always been a battle to have some form of status somewhere, so it was nice to have some eligibility that I know that I’m going to be okay for a few years. It’s pretty surreal. I don’t think it will set in for a long time. To be sat here doing it with him is the craziest thing ever.
“I’m incredibly appreciative of [Matt], everything that he does for me,” added Alex. “I don’t think there’s many people that can say, you know, one of the best players in the world is your brother. I just love him to bits. There’s not much more to say.”
