2022 U.S.OPEN CHAMPION MATT FITZPATRICK WILL TEAM WITH HIS BROTHER ALEX IN THE 2024 ZURICH CLASSIC
Matt won the 2022 U.S. Open and the 2013 U.S. Amateur on the same course
NEW ORLEANS, LA (March 28, 2024)—Matt Fitzpatrick, the 2022 U.S. Open champion, will once again team with his brother Alex, who plays on the DP World Tour, in this year’s Zurich Classic, announced Steve Worthy, CEO of the Fore!Kids Foundation, producer of the tournament.
“We are excited to have Matt and Alex joining us in New Orleans again,” said Worthy. “Matt is already a major champion and has been in the top 10 in the world, while Alex is finding success on the DP World Tour. They were a great story last year and their experience here should serve them well in their attempt to win this year,” Worthy added.
Matt and Alex tied for 19th in last year’s Zurich Classic. The brothers are featured in an entire episode of the Netflix series Full Swing this year, with several scenes of their play in the 2023 Zurich Classic.
Matt Fitzpatrick, currently ranked 11th in the world, earned his first PGA Tour title in 2022 on the biggest stage—the U.S. Open. His victory came at The Country Club, where he also won the 2013 U.S. Amateur. He became only the second player to win both the U.S. Open and the U.S. Amateur on the same course. The first one was Jack Nicklaus. He was also the first English player to win the U.S. Amateur since Harold Hinton in 1911.
His victory at the U.S. Open in 2022 continued his trajectory of success in his short PGA Tour career since earning his card in 2019. He posted 10 top-10 finishes in 20 events played in 2022, including a tie for second at the Wells Fargo Championship; a tie for fifth at the FedEx St. Jude Championship, his first career top-five in a FedExCup Playoffs event; and a tie for fifth in the PGA Championship.
He followed that up in 2023 with victories at the RBC Heritage in the U.S. and the Alfred Dunhill Links Championship in Europe. He scored six top-10 finishes on the PGA Tour last season, including a tie for seventh in the year-opening Sentry Tournament of Champions, a tie for second in the BMW Championship and a tie for ninth in the Tour Championship.
A native of Sheffield, England, he turned professional in 2014 after a year playing collegiately for Northwestern University. While he was still in college, he became the first amateur since Bobby Jones in 1930 to hold low amateur titles at The Open Championship and U.S. Open at the same time.
He qualified for the European Tour in late 2014 and in June, 2015, finished third in the Lyoness (Austrian) Open, took second in the Omega European Masters and earned his first victory at the British Masters in October that year.
He went on the win another six European Tour titles, including the DP World Championship in 2016 and 2020 and the Omega European Masters in consecutive years 2017-18.
He made the European Ryder Cup team in 2016, 2020 and 2023 and played on the Walker Cup team in 2013 when he posted a 3-1 record for the losing GB&I team.
Alex Fitzpatrick, Matt’s younger brother, plays on the DP World Tour. He finished tied for 17th in The Open Championship last year, posted a second in the ISPS Handa World Invitational and tied for eighth in the ISPS Handa Australian Open.
So far this season, his best finishes have been a tie for 16th at the Hero Dubai Classic and the Ras Al Khaimah Championship on the DP World Tour.
Alex played four years for Wake Forest and competed in the Walker Cup for the Great Britain-Ireland team in 2019 and 2021. He was also selected for the Arnold Palmer Cup international team in 2020 and 2021 He was the fourth-ranked amateur in the world before he turned pro.
About Fore!Kids Foundation:
Since 1958, the Fore!Kids Foundation has raised money to fund children’s service organizations through golf events like the Zurich Classic of New Orleans and several charitable golf tournaments.
In 2023, the Fore!Kids Foundation generated a record $2.843 million in charitable giving for children’s charities in the New Orleans and Baton Rouge metro areas. Charitable contributions have been rising in recent years:
- Over $2.843 Million to charities in 2023
- Over $20 Million to charities in last 10 years
- Over $48 Million to charities since inception
More information at http://www.forekidsfoundation.com.
About the Zurich Classic of New Orleans:
Zurich Insurance has sponsored the Zurich Classic of New Orleans for 20 years, one of the longest title sponsor relationships on the PGA Tour. The Zurich Classic is the only team tournament on the PGA TOUR season. Since launching the team format in 2017, the Zurich Classic of New Orleans has drawn some of the highest-ranking fields for any regular-season tournament on the PGA TOUR.
The Zurich Classic has over a $40 million economic impact to the regional economy. With 42 hours of total television coverage on Golf Channel and CBS, a total of 13 million viewers tuned in to watch the tournament.
Internationally, PGA TOUR coverage of the Zurich Classic of New Orleans is available across 148 countries and territories via local broadcast partners, and garners $33 million in positive national and international media exposure for both the city and state throughout the year beyond the days of professional competition.
The tournament will be played April 24-28, 2024, at TPC Louisiana in Avondale. Purse for 2024 totals a record $8.9 million, with each member of the winning team earning $1,286,050 and 400 FedExCup points.
All tickets to the 2024 Zurich Classic will be mobile entry only. Day-specific grounds tickets are only $40. In addition, the Best of the Zurich Class Pass offers a variety of dishes from some of New Orleans most famous restaurants at three locations across the TPC course starting at $175 per day, and the Walk-On’s Stadium Club will offer close-up viewing at the 17th hole in the only two-story, air-conditioned tent on the course. Additional ticket options are available online at www.zurichgolfclassic.com