Matt Fitzpatrick’s PGA Tour season ended on Sunday after he wasn’t able to make the top 30 in FedEx Cup standings to advance to East Lake Golf Course for the Tour Championship.
But Fitzpatrick’s season closed with some frustration other than his own play, as he was seen unloading on a PGA Tour official during his final round Sunday at the BMW Championship.
While on the eighth hole, Fitzpatrick wanted to switch out his driver after the one he already had in his bag had a visible crack in it. However, PGA Tour officials deemed the crack in the driver head was not enough for him to switch to a new one.
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That left Fitzpatrick teeing off with his defective driver, which shot low and left off the face after hitting his ball. Fitzpatrick mentioned the ball went 50 yards shorter than it was going throughout the day.
At the time, Fitzpatrick was tied-30th at 2-under, but he finished tied-28th at 1-under for the tournament.
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“There’s an obvious crack there that’s causing a defect of the ball flight,” Fitzpatrick was heard saying to an official after hooking his driver on Hole 8.
“We have said no,” the official told Fitzpatrick.
“So, I’m going to have to use 3-wood the rest of the day?” Fitzpatrick responded. “That’s what you’re telling me? … This is outrageous.”
Once the official got confirmation that the PGA Tour was not allowing Fitzpatrick to change his driver head, he called it an “absolute joke” as the official gave him the club back.
“In our assessment, not only with the first official but also a couple of others including myself, that threshold of being significantly damaged hadn’t been significant met,” PGA Tour chief referee Stephen Cox, via Golf Digest.
“Although there was a small crack in the face, there was no separation in the metals, and on that basis, that threshold wasn’t met. So, his only choice in that case was to continue using that club. Now, if that club were to get worse, then we would obviously continue to reassess, and at that point, he may have been able to have taken it out. But in his case, I think he chose not to continue to use it and proceeded with his 3-wood from then on.”
During the PGA Tour Live broadcast of the event, Kevin Kisner was heard calling the ruling “terrible,” and he believed Fitzpatrick teed off with the club on eight to prove the point that the club head was affecting his ball flight.
Because of Fitzpatrick’s finish at Castle Pines Golf Club in Douglas County, Colorado, the British pro was left out of the Tour Championship, which has a $25 million purse for the 30 golfers that play. The golfer who comes in last at East Lake gets $550,000.
Fitzpatrick finished 40th in FedEx Cup points this year, collecting three Top 10 finishes and no wins this season.
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