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PGA, Golf Herren Zurich Classic of New Orleans – Third Round Apr 22, 2023 Avondale, Louisiana, USA Alex Fitzpatrick and Matt Fitzpatrick walk the ninth fairway during the third round of the Zurich Classic of New Orleans golf tournament. Avondale Louisiana USA, EDITORIAL USE ONLY PUBLICATIONxINxGERxSUIxAUTxONLY Copyright: xAndrewxWeversx 20230422_anw__206
Imago
PGA, Golf Herren Zurich Classic of New Orleans – Third Round Apr 22, 2023 Avondale, Louisiana, USA Alex Fitzpatrick and Matt Fitzpatrick walk the ninth fairway during the third round of the Zurich Classic of New Orleans golf tournament. Avondale Louisiana USA, EDITORIAL USE ONLY PUBLICATIONxINxGERxSUIxAUTxONLY Copyright: xAndrewxWeversx 20230422_anw__206
When you think of the Fitzpatricks, do you only remember Matt? There’s Alex Fitzpatrick, too, and the two are related by blood. They are brothers. Matt, who was born in 1994, is older. Alex was born four and a half years later in 1999. They have not been apart since.
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Alex was 14 when he caddied for Matt at the 2013 US Amateur Championship. For the little brother, that exposure was monumental. Eight years later, when Matt won the 2022 US Open on the same course, Alex was there on the greens. This was also the time when the younger Fitzpatrick was offered massive money for switching to LIV. But his brother’s victory changed his mindset.
“It’s about the dream, not money,” Alex had said back then after turning down those offers. “…Matt helped me make my choice…I can’t tell you how much I would love to achieve what my brother has.”
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Alex turned pro the same year, after playing college golf at Wake Forest University for four years. His rank before had soared high on WAGR as he reached No. 4 and represented Great Britain and Ireland in two Walker Cups in 2019 and 2021. Meanwhile, Matt was tasting his own success, having won the DP World Tour Championship twice by then (2016 and 2020). He added a third one in 2025, after defeating Rory McIlroy.
As the brothers have kept the Fitzpatrick name dominating with victories that sound similar, their personalities could not be more different.
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Elder brother Matt is what one calls a meticulous perfectionist. Do you know that he has kept all his handwritten notes on every single shot he has taken since he was 15 years old? That’s a whole database of over 7,000 to 9,000 shots in his Excel spreadsheets! Alex, by contrast, is the total opposite.
As a younger brother, he is bound to be an extrovert. He doesn’t log in each and every detail about his performance. Rather, he identifies a lack and improves it as and when required.
“The issue is we’re opposite people. He loves looking at Excel spreadsheets, and I like playing video games. There’s probably not too much in common,” Alex said once, laughing.
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But this difference comes with an advantage too. Matt is a good driver and a good putter, whereas Alex is a good iron player and has a good short game. This has made them a great duo when they competed together at the Zurich Classic of New Orleans. In 2023 and 2024, they registered a T19 and a T11 at the event. However, they missed the cut this year.
And of course, being in the same fraternity means they have competed against each other, too, several times. In 2023, they became the first English brothers in 50 years to play in the same Open Championship. Alex registered a T17, whereas Matt lost the edge and finished on T41. They also competed in the Omega European Masters the same year with a T5 and T3 result, respectively.
All of this competitiveness gives way to several trash talks and brotherly banters. “I try and give him as much sh*t as possible,” Alex once said. “But it always comes back to the ‘how many majors do you have?’. It always will until I win one.”
Written by
Edited by
Riya Singhal