Matt Fitzpatrick says equipment is hindering him at Masters

AUGUSTA, Ga. — On the Players Championship final month, Matt Fitzpatrick revealed some startling information: The 2022 U.S. Open champion had performed all of 2023 and the primary couple of months of this 12 months with 4 further grams of weight in his Titleist TSi3 driver that he didn’t know was there, the results of an gear becoming gaffe early final 12 months.

It’s an extended story, however in brief, Fitzpatrick mentioned, the hidden mass was inflicting him to over-rotate his clubhead and tug his tee photographs. “We had been simply very confused swing-wise,” Fitzpatrick mentioned at Sawgrass. “Seems, take the burden out of the highest of the driving force, and I feel since Phoenix is once I’ve taken it out, I’ve pushed it rather a lot higher.”

For at the very least a couple of begins, the gear repair didn’t at all times translate into higher finishes — after a T15 on the Phoenix Open, Fitzpatrick went MC-T21-MC in his subsequent three begins — however he has proven higher type up to now month, ending fifth on the Gamers and T10 on the Texas Open simply final week.

Which brings us to this week and Fitzpatrick’s look within the 88th Masters.

Fitzpatrick has a wonderful document at Augusta National, lacking the lower simply as soon as in 9 begins and twice ending within the high 10, together with a T10 a 12 months in the past. Within the breezy first spherical on Thursday, Fitzpatrick and his opponents confronted an Augusta Nationwide with some enamel. Distance management is at all times important on this course, however when the wind swirls, precision turns into much more paramount.

Witness Fitzpatrick’s 18th gap, the place he arrived on the tee at two below for the spherical. After a wonderful drive up the left aspect of the golf green, Fitzpatrick had solely a brief iron into the inexperienced on the uphill par-4. His method to a back-right pin gave the impression to be a easy sufficient shot, however Fitzpatrick airmailed his ball into the patrons seated behind the inexperienced, lacking his mark by 10 or 15 yards. He regarded confounded as he muttered one thing to caddie Billy Foster. The overcooked iron led to a bogey and a gap 71 that has him six again of leader Bryson DeChambeau.

“Yeah, I felt like I performed good,” Fitzpatrick mentioned after his spherical earlier than providing, unprompted, “Simply having a pair extra gear points.”

Extra points? “What now?” a reporter requested.

“My brief irons simply don’t need to spin,” he mentioned. “So that you get some that I hit and ball simply goes endlessly. Prime instance on the final there, simply needs to go endlessly. You don’t know whenever you’re going to get them.”

Fitzpatrick, who’s famously analytical about each aspect of his sport, performs Ping Blueprint S irons and a Titleist Professional V1x ball, however he doesn’t have a contract with Ping or some other membership producer, that means he can and does play any golf equipment he needs. He mentioned he has been struggling together with his short-iron management for “in all probability for the final two, three weeks.”

He added: “The numbers are type of OK, however there may be solely a lot you are able to do with the set I’ve obtained. I just like the set. I’ve truly been hitting them effectively. Simply having two or three a spherical the place it’s, like, that’s not proper.”

On such an exacting course, Fitzpatrick was requested: How involved is he about his iron dilemma?  

“It’s not splendid,” he mentioned. “Luckily, a lot of the bother is brief, so whether it is going miles, as least you’re going lengthy. Not splendid, however, yeah, like I say, I’m not likely positive what I can do about it.”

Within the first spherical, Fitzpatrick hit 11 of 14 fairways however solely 10 greens. He birdied his method by means of Amen Nook, going 3-2-4 on 11, 12 and 13, however gave all these strokes again with bogeys on 14, 17 and 18.

Fitzpatrick mentioned regardless of the challenges of the wind, the course was nonetheless gettable due to the in a single day rain that softened the greens.

“I’m a bit deflated with one below,” he mentioned. “however nonetheless it’s first spherical and lengthy solution to go.”

On the course, for positive, however maybe additionally together with his launch monitor on the vary.

Alan Bastable

Golf.com Editor

As GOLF.com’s govt editor, Bastable is answerable for the editorial path and voice of one of many sport’s most revered and extremely trafficked information and repair websites. He wears many hats — modifying, writing, ideating, creating, daydreaming of at some point breaking 80 — and feels privileged to work with such an insanely proficient and hardworking group of writers, editors and producers. Earlier than grabbing the reins at GOLF.com, he was the options editor at GOLF Journal. A graduate of the College of Richmond and the Columbia College of Journalism, he lives in New Jersey together with his spouse and foursome of children.