BMW CHAMPIONSHIP

August 19, 2026

Matt Fitzpatrick

Bellerive Country Club

Press Conference

THE MODERATOR: We would like to welcome Matt Fitzpatrick to the interview room here at the 2026 BMW Championship. Matt, Number 2 in the FedEx Cup, you've had a really great season with three wins, how do you sum up the season and entering this playoffs push.

MATT FITZPATRICK: Yeah, it's been an amazing year. Best career year to date, which is obviously always, yeah, you want that every year, obviously, if you can. But yeah, I think it's been really positive all around. Just obviously happy to be in the position I'm in to try and give it a good final couple of events.

THE MODERATOR: We haven't seen this course on our schedule since 2018 with the PGA Championship. What do you remember from that year and what changes are you seeing since your pro-am?

MATT FITZPATRICK: Yeah, I didn't remember the golf course too much. I remember it being very long. I remember being very short at the time so it didn't really play into my hands very well. A little bit longer now, but not too much. But, yeah, obviously it's a good test, and I think probably a shame that the rain's been so heavy to make it so soft. I'm sure everyone involved kind of wanted it probably a bit firmer and faster, but that's the way it goes.

THE MODERATOR: We'll take some questions.

Q. A couple of guys have said it's wide fairways, but you if you get off the fairways that you're probably not going to have a chance at the green on some of the longer par-4s. Do you agree with that?

MATT FITZPATRICK: Yeah, definitely. I mean, a lot of long par-4s are normally par-5s, I guess, for the members. But, yeah, the protection is that if you do miss the fairways, you are struggling to get there. It might be nice to kind of have an extra little wood that will help you get into the back of the ball with how thick the rough is. So, yeah, it will be interesting to see how that plays.

Q. I thought had you a really good answer at the Travelers when you were talking about searching for a new driver after yours broke earlier this year. Can you explain where you're at in that process right now, because I know you just switched last week again and you went back to an older one. Is this one that you're, is this like a stop gap or is this one you're going to stick with for a while?

MATT FITZPATRICK: No, it's a process that I've been through a lot. I trust the people in my team to obviously guide me with that decision. There's a lot of great people that I've worked with from the different brands, and it's just, yeah, it's just kind of a process of seeing what fits. What with my swing changing from week-to-week it's easy to feel different things. Some weeks one driver might help. Some weeks another might help. Obviously it's nice to have that consistency if you can. But yeah, I mean, I don't see why I kind of would move from what I've got in at the minute. But it's just another part of the game that you can always look to improve, whether, you know, just half a percent here and there, a yard of carry, two mile an hour ball speed, whatever it is, it's an area that you're kind of always trying to perfect, I guess.

Q. I'm waiting for Golf Digest to feature Matthew Fitzpatrick showing us how to do cross-handed chipping and pitching. It seems like it's a natural feature. But since we don't have that, talk about one, why you went to that and two, are there shots that you can play conventionally that you may not be able to play like a flop shot or something like that that the cross-handed technique doesn't allow you to do?

MATT FITZPATRICK: Yeah, I did the cross-handed for a long time just as a practice drill. My coach at the time, we did a lot of that stuff for the full swing, just helping me get the club in better positions on the way back. Did it with chipping as well just to kind of feel a few different things. In the start of 2022 I looked at my stats at the end of the year, we had a team meeting and decided that I wasn't good enough from the fairway. I then carried on practicing a little bit harder with the cross-handed and felt more consistent. Just trusted it into the season. Yeah, I haven't really looked back since. It's great out of the fairway. I really feel like there's been more consistency in my strikes with it. It's harder out of the rough because you can't quite get the angle. You can't break your wrists as much. Conventional shots basically like you say would be a lob shot, that's the only shot really that I can't play in terms of getting the same height because you can't get the angle into the back of the ball. But I can generate just as much spin if not more cross-handed. But obviously the issue is if you got to go up it's harder to get that elevation because it's just coming out with so much spin.

Q. What's the greatest distance you play the shot?

MATT FITZPATRICK: 30 yards, roughly.

Q. I don't know if incentive or motivation is the right word, but is this tournament any different from any other that you play in terms of what you're trying to accomplish, do you know what I mean by that?

MATT FITZPATRICK: Yeah, no, I know what you mean. Personally for me, the world of golf revolves around the four majors. You know, the four majors, that's where you want to play your best golf.

Q. And the RBC?

MATT FITZPATRICK: And the RBC, well that was the fifth major, obviously. I didn't want to say it, but you said it first (smiling.)

But, yeah, those are you know you want to play your best golf obviously there. It's easier said than done to choose where you play your best golf, but basically Signature Events have a little bit more weight, I would say in where you want to succeed. You're playing against stronger fields and whatnot. And obviously this is one of those events. So, yeah, I definitely think it holds more weight in me wanting to play well. I wouldn't say things change mentally because of what it is. I think obviously the majors is just where it's at and that's where I think I'll always kind of live my expectations and goals, I guess.

Q. But you were, I think anyway, probably the last couple years, you came here trying to get to the TOUR Championship, kind of on the outside looking in. There was another year the year you won at Brookline where you were trying to move up a little bit so you wouldn't start so far behind, that kind of stuff. Is it different now with no matter what happens this week you're playing for a shot at it next week?

MATT FITZPATRICK: Yeah, yeah. I've said it a lot, like the example, well, yeah I've said it a lot about the playoffs, that I understand the playoffs in the U.S. are a very big thing in other sports, and it's obviously hard to do that with golf because of the format of golf. I think the player who has played the best all year from January to next week deserves to be the FedExCup champion, the guy who has made the most points, which, you know, is going to be Scottie Scheffler pretty much. And that's how it should be. I feel like if you look in the past with the playoffs I think it was sensible to reduce the points now for these two events because, no offense to people, but you could have like one good week and jump a ton of spaces, and that's not really deserving of someone who's played so well over the season. I think obviously it looks like we're heading more that way to rewarding people who played the best over the long season. I always use the example, I remember specifically poor Collin Morikawa, he was like third going into the playoffs, and I think he finished 25th or something. And he's just had the great, such a great season, probably won a major and probably won a bunch of tournaments, and all of a sudden he's been missed out on these, you know, FedExCup bonuses and all these other things because he just had three poor weeks, and it's like easily done for someone who is playing so well. So I much prefer it that it's going down that road. I do feel like it is a bit weird, as Rory's already pointed out, it's kind of like, yeah, you just need to be top 50, you can kind of get yourself settled before even last week and, you know, you wouldn't even have to turn up until next week for some players. So it is really weird, but I don't have the answer to what that is. Other than, from someone who is English, do we really need playoffs in golf? Like, it's just not really a thing in the U.K., so, you know.

Q. Wondering, if anything, if you hold any weight into something like the Player of the Year award?

MATT FITZPATRICK: Yeah, definitely. Yeah, absolutely. Obviously it would be amazing to be able to achieve that. I think a certain someone's sewed it up last week, if I'm honest (laughing). So, yeah, I think it will be obviously a great opportunity to play well this week and next week to try and put my name back in the hat, but yeah, definitely a lot of weight on that for sure.

Q. So you think Scottie would be the leader in the clubhouse as it stands right now?

MATT FITZPATRICK: Well, if I'm completely honest I don't even know how the voting works or who decides or what.

Q. You guys do.

MATT FITZPATRICK: Yeah, okay, so us guys. So, yeah, my guess would be most guys will say Scottie. I, you know, he's leading the FedExCup by a lot of points, I've just made a point that the guy who's played the best the whole season deserves to be the best player. And right now that is him. So, like I can't contradict myself, but that is the truth. Like, that is the truth, so I can't deny that. I will say that I do believe, I know Paul McGinley made a point the other week, but it's very, it's like the PGA TOUR Player of the Year, it's not necessarily the world Player of the Year. I know Rory's kind of probably missed out on that a couple times. So obviously there is a little bit of that in there as well. But yeah, like I say, the guy who is leading the FedExCup right now is deserving of that as those things stand I would say.

Q. There's another Fitzpatrick who is maybe going for another different award. Didn't get his card until basically May and has already basically locked up the TOUR Championship. Wondering if that is fulfilling for you to see your brother be able to find so much success so early?

MATT FITZPATRICK: Yeah, I think obviously winning how we did and kind of been thrown in the deep end, you never know how he's going to take. Obviously to have I think he had three top 10s since that doing that, sort of straight away as well, which was really nice to see. I think it was really good confidence boost for him to show that he has the game to compete. So, yeah, I mean, hopefully he can sort of play well the next couple weeks as well and sort of finish off a really great season that he's had.

Q. If you go win, win, or if you win the FedExCup, does that change your thinking about yourself in comparison?

MATT FITZPATRICK: Yeah, I mean, certainly the weight that I would say everyone puts on the FedExCup itself, yeah, I definitely think it does. And by, I mean, everyone else's weight that puts on the FedExCup. Like it's, like to me it's a very, it's a playoff event, it's a smaller field and stuff, so it's obviously a bit different to sort of your elevated events and whatnot. But, yeah, I definitely think if I do do that, then, yeah, there's absolutely I do feel like there's, you know, you're in the mix, yeah.

Q. Yeah, a huge lead right now over your brother, but as was mentioned, it's just a free for all next week. Do you care if you, you know, if you don't win the FedExCup that you finish ahead of Alex?

MATT FITZPATRICK: (Laughing). Yeah, obviously, yeah obviously it would be great to finish ahead of Alex. But, yeah, and I think that sort of begs the other question of, you know, the season long race of one week someone plays well and they have won the FedExCup. But again, I hate to be honest, but like there's no disrespect to the people who, you know, have done that over one week period, but...

Q. Tommy last year?

MATT FITZPATRICK: Well, yeah, I mean, obviously Tommy's the only example really right now, isn't it. But you're going to have multiple as the years go on if it stays like this. It just doesn't make sense -- that just doesn't make sense to me. Like, that's just my opinion, yeah.

Q. Unlike a lot of your peers here on the PGA TOUR you didn't give yourself much of a break after the playoffs and the Ryder Cup last season. Do you feel any ill effects on the body right now after heading into this stretch of 2026, and maybe just given the progress you've made in the game this season have you feel like you maybe are in a bit more of a break in this fall?

MATT FITZPATRICK: Yeah, I think the schedule was a little different for me. I had agreed to play quite a few events in Europe at the start of last year. So they were commitments that I wanted to sort of hold. Obviously played a lot this year. I won't be playing as much. Just have more time to be able to relax and recover and sort of refocus on getting ready for next year and stuff, so, yeah.

And then body-wise, sort of everything, yeah, everything's been working well and obviously it is, it can be a long season, so it was nice to have sort of a bit of a break after The Open Championship.

Q. In the last two see songs you jumped from outside the top 100 in strokes gained approach all the way to the very top of the pack for much of this season. Has it surprised you how quick it's gone, and just talk about maybe being in the category of player style, like Scottie Scheffler, like Collin Morikawa as one of the best iron players in the world.

MATT FITZPATRICK: Yeah, I definitely think it was surprising considering where I was. It's easy to say, I want to improve X, Y, Z, and obviously you have to go and do that. So to be able to do that, prove to myself the work that me and Mark have done has just been so positive. And, yeah, I think it's hard for me to sit here and say, Yeah, I always felt like I was going to be good with my irons, because I never really felt that. I felt other areas of my game were my strengths. So to sit here this year and have achieved some of that is pretty awesome.

Q. Don't know if I ever heard this answer, but how old was Alex when he first beat you if you guys played matches as a kid or if he's even beaten you?

MATT FITZPATRICK: I'm still waiting for him to beat me (Laughing.) No, no, honestly, I know have no idea. With the age gap we never really crossed over in tournaments and stuff.

Q. I think Scottish is probably the only thing on your DP World Tour schedule so far, what are your plans for the fall?

MATT FITZPATRICK: I'll play Wentworth and Dunhill and then playoffs are up in the air. I still need to qualify and then obviously with this stuff going on in the Middle East it's not sure yet.

Q. Do you need three more?

MATT FITZPATRICK: I need, after Wentworth and Dunhill I probably need one more. But there might be, it depends on what's going on.

Q. You're well known for tracking your numbers and being very analytical about your game. Is there anything in your numbers right now that tell you that you're well suited for this golf course?

MATT FITZPATRICK: I haven't really looked, to be honest. I haven't really looked. Yeah, no, I haven't really looked. I know what things are advised to do well around here. But yeah, I haven't really paid too much attention to it.