Fitzpatrick Hits ‘out Of This World’ Shot To Defeat Scheffler In Rbc Heritage Playoff

England’s Matt Fitzpatrick hit nan world No 1, Scottie Scheffler, successful a playoff to triumph nan RBC Heritage for nan 2nd time.

Fitzpatrick took a three-shot into nan last information astatine Hilton Head and still held that advantage opinionated connected nan 15th tee. But playing partner Scheffler produced birdies astatine 15 and 16 and Fitzpatrick’s duffed spot connected 18 costs him a bogey, sending him into a playoff that he looked 2nd favourite to win.

Fitzpatrick, though, deed a superb four-iron attack changeable to 12 feet and rolled successful a tournament-winning birdie aft Scheffler had missed nan greenish pinch his 2nd and chipped to 8 feet pinch his next.

“It was a batch of grit,” Fitzpatrick, from Yorkshire, told CBS aft claiming nan 4th PGA Tour title of his profession and 2nd successful nan abstraction of 28 days aft winning astatine nan Valspar Championship past month.

“I knew Scottie was going to make immoderate birdies down nan agelong and I benignant of had to bent successful location a small bit. The only spot changeable I recovered into atom each week was successful regularisation location (18th).”

Fitzpatrick – who said nan RBC Heritage is adjacent to his bosom arsenic he holidayed astatine Hilton Head pinch his family erstwhile he was young – evoked memories of Rory McIlroy’s stunning victory astatine nan Masters past week aft his lead had been whittled away. McIlroy had mislaid a six-shot halfway advantage successful Augusta earlier winning his 2nd Green Jacket connected a melodramatic last afternoon.

Matthew Fitzpatrick watches his changeable connected nan 16th during nan last information of nan RBC Heritage. Photograph: Andrew Redington/Getty Images

After failing to triumph successful regulation, Fitzpatrick said: “He (caddie Dan Parratt) really said: ‘Go and get to nan tee. We would person taken this astatine nan commencement of nan week’.

“I cognize Rory said that nan different week truthful I jokingly said to Dan: ‘OK present he is, Harry Diamond (McIlroy’s caddie)’.

“We had a bully laughter astir that, but I felt I was successful a bully spot and to deed nan four-iron location was retired of this world. This was a tourney I wanted to triumph increasing up earlier immoderate of nan fields and earlier I understood astir nan game.

“To triumph it doubly intends nan world. To spell toe-to-toe pinch Scottie and triumph it connected nan 73rd spread is special.”