Matt Fitzpatrick may already have a U.S. Open title to his name, but he’s never arrived at the USGA showpiece event in better form than he does this year.
The Sheffield native is ranked fourth in the world, behind just Scottie Scheffler, Rory McIlroy and Cameron Young, and is the top-ranked player in the FedEx standings with three PGA Tour wins in 2026, including an emotional one alongside brother Alex that earned the younger of the two a PGA Tour card.
Though Fitzpatrick’s winning score at Brookline in 2022 was six-under, only five of the previous 25 U.S. Opens featured a lower-scoring winner, and he hopes that Shinnecock Hills bares its teeth this week when he and 155 other hopefuls take to the course in Southampton, New York.
“I think the biggest thing for me is that I like — I don’t particularly like playing birdie-fests,” he said in his pre-tournament press conference.
“I don’t think it’s as enjoyable as having to — take today on the 11th hole, for example, the wind is pumping in off the left, and I’ve chipped a 5-iron in there. If there’s no wind there, you might be hitting 9-iron or whatever.
“To me, I feel like it’s more of a test of controlling your ball if it is windy, if it is firm. If it’s firm — I said it here last time. Obviously there was a big — what’s the right word — meltdown of, oh, they’ve lost the golf course, they’ve lost the golf course.
“I never believed they lost it. I don’t think they lost the golf course at all here. I think, for me, it was difficult, and the strength of this golf course is greens and the difficulty of the greens.
“But I do believe, aside from maybe 10 and 11, if you miss the greens in the right spots and do your homework, that you have opportunities to get up-and-down still. I feel like that is a patience thing. That is a skill in course managing, in hitting good shots that are on the green in those tough times.
“I think that for me — this golf course, I think when it is really tough like that, I enjoy that challenge because you have to do your homework, and you have to hit good shots, and that’s what I think any good golf tournament should require.”
Heavy rain on Sunday night meant the golf course that presented itself to the players on Monday was relatively soft, but with only a little further rain forecast for the rest of the week, and the wind set to sweep in from the east, carrying less moisture as a result, the golf course has the potential to get really spicy if the USGA opts to let it.
“Yeah, it can a lot,” Fitzpatrick replied when asked how much more difficult the course has the potential to be. “Today the greens are really soft, much softer than I thought. I know there was rain last night, I think, and it is humid, so there’s probably a bit more moisture in the greens.
“With this wind, though, if it continues, which I think it is forecast, and I think there is some rain, too, but obviously it can dry out pretty quickly. It’s obviously warm today.
“I think, for me, if I compare it to 2018, I remember them practice rounds that it was actually quite firm in the practice rounds, so it might not be the case this time. But, like I say, it’s in as great of shape as it is, and I know it’s going to be a good test.”
And for Fitzpatrick, iconic golf courses like Shinnecock Hills are what U.S. Opens are all about, even if the fairway widths in 2026 are much more generous than they were in most of the previous editions.
“Yeah, it’s always awesome to play this golf course, golf courses like this,” he said. “When I think of U.S. Opens, that’s what I think of. You think of these historic golf courses that have got such great memories of great championships and great past winners and whatnot.
“To me, that’s what a U.S. Open is. You go to these historic golf courses, and they’re set up a certain way. You grew up watching U.S. Opens. It was tough. It was tight off the tee. It was firm. It was really hot.
“I feel like Shinnecock summarises that very well, particularly its history here, and even just going out there now seeing the golf course as it is, it’s kind of how you picture a U.S. Open. For me, I enjoy those ones the most.”
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