2021 Ryder Cup Preview: What to Expect from Matthew Fitzpatrick

The Ryder Cup competition between Europe and the United States begins this week at Whistling Straits Golf Course in Sheboygan, Wisconsin. The top 12 players from each side will meet with the winner taking home one of the most coveted trophies in golf.

As the teams prepare for competition, we will be doing the same by previewing the players in this year’s event. Today, we look at Team Europe’s Matt Fitzpatrick.

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Ryder Cup experience – This will be Fitzpatrick’s second appearance in the Ryder Cup. He previously played for the European side in 2016 and saw limited action. He was 0-2-0 overall, losing his one foursomes match as well as his singles match, where he lost to Zach Johnson 4&3.

Worldwide experience – Fitzpatrick has six wins on the European Tour, including a pair of wins each at the DP World Tour Championship in Dubai and at the European Masters. He has not won on the American tour. His best finish in any major came when he finished T7 at the 2016 Masters. He did make the cut in all four majors this season.

What to expect – Honestly, probably not a lot. Fitzpatrick is a solid player, but outside of Bernd Wiesberger, he’s not being counted on to do much this week. The core group of the European side will be made up of Jon Rahm, Rory McIlroy and the like. The veterans, like Ian Poulter, Lee Westwood and Sergio Garcia, all know their roles as well.

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This is not to say that Fitzpatrick could not do some positive things for the European side. He’s a very talented player who is currently ranked 27th in the Official World Golf Rankings. If captain Padraig Harrington calls on him, Fitzpatrick will be ready.

The guess here is that Fitzpatrick plays a limited role for the Europeans but does better than he did in 2016, when he was just 22 years old. His experience over the last five years will definitely benefit him this week.

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