Matt Fitzpatrick, the emergent golfer who will defend his 2022 U.S. Open title at the Los Angeles Country Club in mid-June, leaned on a neat mental trick at this year’s Masters. Fitzpatrick, 28, hadn’t fared well at Augusta in previous starts: since 2016, he’s finished, on average, in 27th place. So he recalibrated his expectations. “Anything better than that, I’ve got to take the positives from it,” says Fitzpatrick. “I felt like that kept me grounded throughout the week.” Fitzpatrick finished tied for 10th, his best in seven years. A week later, he won the PGA event in Hilton Head Island, S.C. Following his early-spring roll, Fitzpatrick rose to sixth in the World Golf Rankings, tops for his career.
As golf seeks out players to carry the sport into the post–Tiger Woods era, Fitzpatrick is making his play. He’s taken an intensely analytical approach to improving his game, incorporating sports science—Fitzpatrick closely monitors his sleep—video breakdowns of his swing, and other stats to gain an edge. “We’ve done a lot of work with that,” says Fitzpatrick, “just to find those small 1% gains. I’m always pushing to be better.”
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