15 March 2024 , 15:30
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Matt Fitzpatrick quite remarkably forgot he was playing with an added weight in the grip of his driver for over a year amid a decline in his game.
While he competes for glory at The Players Championship, Fitzpatrick revealed he had been playing with additional weight in the grip of his driver for around a year. Despite being renowned for his attention to detail, the 2022 US Open champion admitted he hadn’t realised the simple issue.
Fitzpatrick added a four-gram weight on his driver grip when doing some testing back in February 2023, but it remained there without his knowledge. He then started noticing elements of his game off the tee going awry and left, but had no solution.
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The 29-year-old only became aware of his error when his driver got re-gripped last month. He admitted removing the grip has massively improved his driving, insisting the difference was immediate.
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“There was a weight in the grip, which we did some testing with in February last year, and never took it out,” Fitzpatrick said. “For whatever reason, I just forgot that it was ever in there.
“As soon as it came out and I hit it the next day, it felt night and day. I could hit it as hard as I want, and it wouldn’t go left. Previously, I felt like I hit it hard, and it would just go straight left.”
Despite his troubles, Fitzpatrick still emerged victorious at the RBC Heritage and Dunhill Links Championship. He added: “My driving kind of got worse from pretty much after Harbour Town, and we were going back and forth.
Matt Fitzpatrick's tee shots were much improved during the first round of The Players Championship (Getty Images)“We were just very confused swing-wise, did all sorts. Turns out, take the weight out of the top of the driver, and I think since Phoenix is when I've taken it out, I've driven it a lot better.
“Maybe I'd have won four times if I had it out.”
Fitzpatrick’s struggles with his driver over the last year were clear to see. He slid down from 10th in strokes gained off the tee all the way to 92nd on the PGA Tour as a result of the extra weight.
He was back to his best at TPC Sawgrass. In his opening round, Fitzpatrick missed just three fairways en route to posting a 66.
“I drove it like I feel like I can drive it,” he said. “To me, it felt a bit like my old self: drove the ball well, putted well, and that’s always been the key to when I’ve played well, really.”
Follow along with live coverage of The Players at Mirror Sport.