Matt Fitzpatrick suffered a wild swing on the 18th hole after hitting his tee shot into the trees – and his error was compounded by “two thieves” stealing his ball – but the English star admitted the mishap actually played in his favour
Golf star Matt Fitzpatrick joked that “two little thieves” who took his ball at Wentworth might have done him a favour after hitting a shot into the trees, before a thunderstorm delayed proceedings.
The 31-year-old British star had a difficult moment on the 18th hole after miscuing his tee shot, with his caddie Daniel Parratt proposing to wait until after the break before they went looking for the ball.
Fitzpatrick asked for guidance from BMW PGA Championship officials amid concerns the ball could be taken by a spectator – which ended up happening.
He said: “When the siren went, Dan said, ‘What happens if someone goes sniffing around, finds your ball and decides to pocket it’.
“That was a great point as there had to be a good chance of that happening. So we asked a referee whether we should look for the ball then, rather than risk it being taken.”
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After Fitzpatrick went over to the spot where his ball landed, he discovered that a group of spectators had seen two youngsters run off with a golf ball.
It meant that Fitzpatrick had to take a drop in that same area, which he says might have helped him as he ended up with a bogey despite the ordeal.
“He took us over to the crowd where we thought my ball landed. A few people saw two young boys dive into the bushes and come out grinning with a golf ball.”
He added: “So, we decided the balance of probability was that it was my ball — and that I’d take a drop in that spot when we got back.
“I still made a bogey six but if I’d had to play my provisional ball, it could have been worse. So those two little thieves probably saved me a shot. It would’ve been better if they’d thrown it on the fairway!”
He added: “I played great apart from that one wild drive. This is an event every English golfer wants to win and I’m no different.”
Fitzpatrick managed to secure a six-under par 66 and ended up two strokes off the pace, with Ludvig Aberg holding the lead after the opening day.
The threat of thunderstorms resulted in an 85-minute delay in total, which meant 30 players were not able to finish their opening rounds before play was suspended after 7.30pm because of fading light.
