Matt Fitzpatrick is now ranked as the number three golfer in the world.
It would actually be fair to argue that Fitzpatrick is the most in-form golfer on the planet right now.
The 32-year-old’s win at the RBC Heritage on Sunday capped off a truly remarkable start to the 2026 season for him.
Matt Fitzpatrick is on fire right now but just 12 months ago at the RBC Heritage, he was really struggling with his game.
Fitzpatrick’s playoff victory over Scottie Scheffler at the RBC Heritage saw him cement his position inside the world’s top three.
However, this time last year he was ranked closer to 100th in the world than the top 50, by quite some margin as well.
So what has changed? How has Fitzpatrick managed to improve so much?
Fitzpatrick spoke to reporters after his terrific victory at Harbour Town Golf Links on Sunday.
He responded when asked how he has managed to completely turn his form around over the past 9-12 months.
“Yeah, it was here that I saw Mark Blackburn for the first time, and straight away we did some stuff with my approach play,“ the Englishman said.
“He kind of looked at the way my — it wasn’t a full screening, but he looked at the way body was, strengths, weaknesses of movement, and sort of tied everything back to that.
“The biggest thing for me was the retraction of my arms, making sure they don’t get long and get away from me, and that’s been the biggest difference.
“Certainly in terms of my approach play, it’s been an unbelievable change, and just felt so good and just so much more controlled.
The ‘retraction’ of Fitzpatrick’s arms that he talks about is something he does during his quirky pre-shot routine.
Fitzpatrick retracts his shoulder blades before setting up to the ball.
This essentially gives him a shorter wingspan, with his arms tucked in closer to his body.
As a result, he is able to get the golf club on a steeper plane on his backswing with his irons, enabling him to hit soft cuts, rather than ropey draws.
Fitzpatrick’s slight swing change, helped by his extremely unorthodox pre-shot routine, has made a huge difference to his game.
He has won twice already this year on the PGA Tour and has a runner-up finish to his name as well.
Matt Fitzpatrick’s win at the RBC Heritage on Sunday capped off what has been an incredible first three months of the season for him.