KING OF THE HILL!
Fleetwood charge sets up shot at first US Tour win
BY HIS own admission, it has been a quiet start to the season for Tommy Fleetwood but that could change in spectacular fashion at the Arnold Palmer Invitational this weekend.
For the first two rounds at Bay Hill he was so good he delivered rounds of 69 and 66 to establish a four-stroke lead over anyone else in his half of the draw, on nine under par.
Indeed, it was a good morning all round for England’s twentysomethings, as Eddie Pepperell, making his PGA Tour debut, and Matt Wallace shot 68 and 69 respectively to lie tied third on four under of those who had completed two rounds by lunchtime on the second day.
The gifted pair are sharing that position with Masters champions past and present in Bubba Watson and Patrick Reed, while this week’s defending champion Rory McIlroy is within striking distance after following up his opening 72 with a 70.
Fleetwood’s long hair might be the reason most people consider him different from the average pro, but the real contrast comes when you look in his bag. Yes, he is still turning down millions from golf club manufacturers to use their wares exclusively in favour of a set that cherry-picks bits from virtually all of them. No fewer than six suppliers are represented in his bag of 14 clubs, and all of them worked effectively for the first 36 holes.
‘I think the luxury of being able to try everything that’s out there really suits me,’ said Fleetwood, 28. ‘There’s a lot to be said for freedom of choice. Signing with someone is not something for me to worry about at the moment.’
One of his latest additions is a four-iron he smoked to good effect at the par-five sixth, where he knocked in the resultant short eagle putt, before repeating the feat at the long 12th. Doing well on the four par-fives is the key to scoring here, and Fleetwood completed them in six under par. Fleetwood feels a win in America is the next logical step. ‘I’ve done a lot of good things over the last two or three years, so yeah, I think it’s pretty clear that a PGA Tour win would be the next progression,’ he said. ‘I’ve started this season slowly but if I can keep focusing and improving, hopefully that will be the end result.’ Heaven knows what the Americans are going to make of Pepperell’s sense of humour. They are all here with clothing adorned with Palmer’s umbrella insignia in honour of the great man, and there was a sharp intake of breath when the Oxford man rolled up a trouser leg to show off his socks. ‘That’s… that’s Jack,’ stuttered one journalist at the image of Jack Nicklaus on Pepperell’s socks. ‘I’m aware of that,’ deadpanned Pepperell. ‘Jack was better anyway, wasn’t he?’ The fear is that one ageing volunteer, clad from head to toe in Palmer regalia and eavesdropping, might never recover.
4 TOMMY FLEETWOOD has won four times on the European Tour, the last of which was at the Abu Dhabi Championship last year