Matt Fitzpatrick has predicted a birdie blitz at the Open Championship, and revealed that an omen from his teenage years means that he could win it.
The Sheffield star walked the Old Course on Monday and his caddie Billy Foster reeled off his historical knowledge of final scores that have clinched the Claret Jug.
Zach Johnson was victorious on 15 under par in 2015. Louis Oosthuize n at 16 under in 2010, and Tiger Woods 19 under in 2000 and 14 under par in 2005. Fitzpatrick inspected the baked course, admitted up to six par fours can be reached from the tee, and predicted a “really low” scoring shoot-out.
The 28C sunshine and flat calm weather could turn into a putting contest unless the wind gets up later this week. He said: “Someone asked Billy today, what does he think the winning score will be. I'm pretty oblivious with most golf history, and he was saying, Louis won on minus 15. Someone on minus 19, minus 16.
“I was taken aback by how low the scores were, like I didn't think it would be that low. I think with it being firm and par-4s more gettable, it could be a low one here as well, weather permitting. You have a good day with the driver, good day point putter, it's going really, really low.” It is a far cry from the day Fitzpatrick won the Junior Open here as a 14-year-old, and there comes the good omen. When he was a kid, Fitzpatrick won the US Open for boys, and l ast month followed it up by winning the senior prize.
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With the Junior Open already won, the 27 year old can conjure some golfing symmetry with a win. He added: “I won the St Andrews Junior Open once, so that was a good result. That week it was literally like sideways rain and sideways - blowing an absolute gale. Everything shot was wood, I think! I had the two rain gloves on and the mittens and three pairs of waterproofs.
“There wasn't much atmosphere. There was literally my mum, dad, and our dog watching. I've kind of grown up enjoying links. I enjoy the challenge when it's windy and it's hard and you've got to grind. I just prefer it like that. When you've got to dig in and just grind out a score, whether it's level-par, 2-under, 5-over. But if it's still and calm, I don't particularly enjoy playing that. When it's really hard, it's harder for everyone else. I enjoy the challenge more.”
Florida-based Fitzpatrick admits links golf is a far cry for the courses he now plays on the PGA Tour. That's why he was so pleased with his sixth place at the Scottish Open last week. He explained: “I'll be honest, I was a little bit apprehensive. Where's my game at? The golf last week, links golf is quite drastically different from what we played at the US Open and what we played year round. I was kind of laughing to my friends, and I was kind of saying I'm just happy that I've still kind of got it a little bit!”
