Tommy Fleetwood is chasing a hometown miracle in real time. The Southport native sat four shots off the lead Sunday afternoon at Royal Birkdale, tied for fifth through 10 holes of the final round of the 154th Open Championship.
Jordan Spieth, who played alongside Fleetwood over the opening two rounds and has felt Birkdale’s energy from a few feet away, offered his own read on what his playing partner is experiencing.
“I said, ‘That was awesome.’ What amazing experience it has to be for him. I don’t know if I’ve ever seen anything else like that. It felt like a Ryder Cup, but for one guy. Which is pretty incredible. I just told him that I’m pulling for him, and that I hope he gets it done,” Spieth said, as quoted by Gabby Herzig of The Athletic.
Sam Burns began the day with a two-stroke cushion, and he stretched it further early, reaching 10 under through four holes. Fleetwood, at 7 under, shares his spot with Scottie Scheffler, while Cameron Young and Ryan Fox lurk at 9 under. The margins are thin, and Fleetwood has already reminded everyone why the crowd showed up.
Tommy Fleetwood’s Home Crowd Roars Back to Life
Fleetwood birdied the first hole from 73 feet to open his final round, sending the home galleries into a frenzy before he had even settled into his rhythm, according to Golf Channel’s live coverage from Birkdale. It was the kind of moment Fleetwood has built his entire Open week around, feeding off a gallery that has followed him from the first tee to the last green all week.
“Like walking up to every green, it’s like the most amazing ovation that you can imagine,” Fleetwood told reporters, as quoted by Reuters’ Martyn Herma. “There’s a lot of people I know out there. But I just try and be myself and I try and focus as much as I can on my game and have everybody on the journey with me.”
Playing partner Jon Rahm, who has watched the Fleetwood roadshow up close all week, said the backing carries a rare quality. Rahm called it “unconditional support” that lifts everyone in the group, not just Fleetwood, without dampening respect for the rest of the field, according to Reuters.
| The 154th Open Championship | ||||||
| Royal Birkdale | Southport, England | Round 4 — In Progress | ||||||
| Pos | Player | Country | Total | Thru | R4 | R1 R2 R3 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| T1 | Cameron Young | 🇺🇸 USA | -10 | 17 | -7 | 67 67 73 |
| T1 | Si Woo Kim | 🇰🇷 KOR | -10 | 7 | -2 | 68 67 67 |
| 3 | Ryan Fox | 🇳🇿 NZL | -9 | 7 | -1 | 72 68 62 |
| 4 | Sam Burns | 🇺🇸 USA | -8 | 7 | +2 | 73 62 65 |
| 5 | Scottie Scheffler | 🇺🇸 USA | -7 | 13 | -3 | 68 68 70 |
| T6 | Casey Jarvis ✓ | 🇿🇦 RSA | -6 | F | -4 | 73 67 68 |
| T6 | Tommy Fleetwood | 🏴 ENG | -6 | 10 | -1 | 69 67 69 |
| T6 | Bryson DeChambeau | 🇺🇸 USA | -6 | 8 | E | 67 68 69 |
| T6 | Lucas Herbert | 🇦🇺 AUS | -6 | 8 | +1 | 70 62 71 |
| T6 | Ryan Gerard | 🇺🇸 USA | -6 | 7 | +1 | 67 67 69 |
| T11 | Adam Scott ✓ | 🇦🇺 AUS | -5 | F | -4 | 72 66 71 |
| T11 | Russell Henley ✓ | 🇺🇸 USA | -5 | F | -4 | 70 71 68 |
| T11 | Sungjae Im | 🇰🇷 KOR | -5 | 16 | -2 | 66 72 69 |
| T11 | Kazuma Kobori | 🇳🇿 NZL | -5 | 11 | -1 | 70 69 67 |
| T15 | Corey Conners ✓ | 🇨🇦 CAN | -4 | F | -3 | 71 67 71 |
| T15 | Rasmus Neergaard-Petersen | 🇩🇰 DEN | -4 | 10 | +1 | 72 66 67 |
| T15 | Jackson Suber | 🇺🇸 USA | -4 | 8 | +2 | 65 69 70 |
| T15 | Ludvig Åberg | 🇸🇪 SWE | -4 | 8 | +2 | 71 66 67 |
| T19 | Rickie Fowler ✓ | 🇺🇸 USA | -3 | F | -4 | 71 69 71 |
| T19 | Chris Gotterup ✓ | 🇺🇸 USA | -3 | F | -3 | 70 68 72 |
| T19 | Collin Morikawa ✓ | 🇺🇸 USA | -3 | F | -1 | 68 70 70 |
| T19 | Rory McIlroy ✓ | 🇬🇧 NIR | -3 | F | +1 | 72 67 69 |
| T19 | Hideki Matsuyama | 🇯🇵 JPN | -3 | 11 | +1 | 72 67 67 |
| T19 | Shane Lowry | 🇮🇪 IRL | -3 | 13 | +1 | 69 68 69 |
| T19 | Jon Rahm | 🇪🇸 ESP | -3 | 13 | +3 | 69 67 70 |
| T32 | Patrick Cantlay ✓ | 🇺🇸 USA | -2 | F | -2 | 71 68 71 |
| T32 | Brooks Koepka ✓ | 🇺🇸 USA | -2 | F | -2 | 70 71 69 |
| T32 | Xander Schauffele | 🇺🇸 USA | -2 | 10 | +2 | 71 69 66 |
| T39 | Rory McIlroy ✓ | 🇬🇧 NIR | -1 | F | +1 | 72 67 69 |
| T39 | Robert MacIntyre | 🏴 SCO | -1 | 17 | +2 | 67 69 71 |
| T39 | Justin Thomas | 🇺🇸 USA | +1 | 15 | +4 | 70 69 68 |
Fleetwood Enjoying Hometown Hero Status
Spieth, the 2017 Open champion, knows exactly what a Sunday charge here can mean.
Fleetwood, 35, was born in Southport and grew up sneaking onto Royal Birkdale’s fairways as a kid with his father before he ever teed it up in the Open itself, according to PGA Tour’s official player biography. He turned professional in 2010 after winning the English Amateur and representing Great Britain and Ireland at the Walker Cup.
His résumé includes a PGA Tour title, eight DP World Tour wins and a 2017 Race to Dubai crown, along with runner-up finishes at the 2018 U.S. Open and the 2019 Open Championship. He has become a Ryder Cup fixture for Europe and remains the highest-ranked Englishman chasing a first major, a distinction no countryman has claimed at the Open since Nick Faldo in 1992.
Sunday at Birkdale now becomes about closing that gap, one roar at a time.
Tommy Fleetwood Closes in on Open Lead After Jordan Spieth’s Encouraging Words