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Ryder Cup hero Tommy Fleetwood hunting for first US win at Bay Hill

By David Salituro

ORLANDO, FLORIDA - MARCH 08: Tommy Fleetwood of England plays his shot from the ninth tee during the second round of the Arnold Palmer Invitational Presented by Mastercard at the Bay Hill Club on March 08, 2019 in Orlando, Florida. (Photo by Richard Heathcote/Getty Images)
ORLANDO, FLORIDA - MARCH 08: Tommy Fleetwood of England plays his shot from the ninth tee during the second round of the Arnold Palmer Invitational Presented by Mastercard at the Bay Hill Club on March 08, 2019 in Orlando, Florida. (Photo by Richard Heathcote/Getty Images) /
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Tommy Fleetwood, who made his name as half of the Ryder Cup heroes “Moli-Wood” last year, has a share of the lead at the Arnold Palmer Invitational looking for his first win on American soil.

Tommy Fleetwood is already a hero in Europe. Now he’s two rounds away from making his mark for the first time in America.

Fleetwood shot six-under 66 on Friday in the second round of the Arnold Palmer Invitational, taking a share of the 36-hole lead with Keegan Bradley at nine-under. The 28-year-old Englishman has four career wins on the European Tour but has never won in 45 starts on the PGA Tour.

It was on the four par-fives at Orlando’s Bay Hill Club and Lodge that Fleetwood did his best work on Friday. At the 6th he hit his approach from 224 yards to 17 feet before holing the putt for eagle. Again, at the 12th, facing 275 yards to the hole on his second shot, he hit his approach to six feet to set up another eagle. Fleetwood played the par-fives in six-under on Friday, including birdies on the fourth and 16th.

In his opening round, despite shooting 69, he failed to birdie any of the par-fives. He acknowledges that was the difference in allowing him to shoot a low score in the second round.

“Fittingly enough that was, when I came off yesterday and I was in the truck with my trainer…I said I could have played the par-fives better. I was level par on them yesterday,” he told PGATour.com after his round. “Today made a much better job of those. And you have to on tough courses. If you can score on the par-fives you have to to shoot a good score. That’s basically where I made all my numbers up today.”

Fleetwood saves his best performances for golf’s biggest stages. Last year at the U.S. Open he barely missed a nine-foot putt at the 18th in the final round for the lowest round in tournament history, settling for a record-tying 63 to finish a shot behind Brooks Koepka. His play in Paris at the Ryder Cup in September, however, was what cemented his legacy back home in Europe.

Fleetwood and Italian Francesco Molinari paired up four times against the Americans in Paris. They won all four of their matches, becoming the first European duo to go 4-0 in Ryder Cup history. The legend of “Moli-Wood” was born, as Fleetwood and Molinari were feted as heroes across the continent for carrying Europe to a decisive win over Team USA on home soil.

With his reputation already made back home, Fleetwood now has a chance to find the same level of success in the United States. He’s made 11 top-10 finishes in PGA Tour events and twice been runner-up, including that heartbreaking U.S. Open finish a year ago. He’s reached as high as ninth in the Official Golf Rankings (he’s currently 14th). His long, flowing hair make him one of the most recognizable players in the world. He admits, though, that winning on golf’s biggest stage is the next progression in his career.

“I think that’s pretty clear in our minds that that would be the next logical step,” he said. “To win in America or win on the PGA Tour and then see where we can go from there.”

Fleetwood and Bradley currently have a four-shot lead over the rest of the field, giving them a cushion to work with this weekend as they chase a win at Arnie’s tournament. Bradley already has four career wins; the red cardigan awarded to the champion, a staple of Palmer’s attire over the years, would be a nice first addition to Fleetwood’s wardrobe on this side of the Atlantic.

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