2026 Zurich Classic leaderboard, grades: Matt Fitzpatrick stays hot winning alongside brother Alex

One week after claiming the RBC Heritage, Matt Fitzpatrick found pay dirt for the second consecutive tournament, doing so alongside his younger brother, Alex Fitzgerald, on Sunday at the 2026 Zurich Classic — the lone team event on the PGA Tour calendar. The brothers made a clinching birdie on the 72nd hole to reach 31 under for the tournament, good for a one-stroke victory over the Norwegian duo of Kristoffer Reitan and Kris Ventura, as well as the squad of Alex Smalley and Hayden Springer.

While the win marks Matt’s third of the season (all in his last four starts) and pushes him to the top spot in the FedEx Cup standings, the victory means more for Alex, who consequently secured full-time playing privileges on the PGA Tour. With the victory, the younger Fitzpatrick earns a two-year exemption on the PGA Tour and a spot in the fields for the rest of the signature events in 2026. He also picked up invitations for next month’s PGA Championship and the 2027 Players Championship at TPC Sawgrass.

Alex entered the week as a full-time member on the DP World Tour, where he was trending towards earning a PGA Tour card via his play across the pond. He won the Indian Open in his last start to climb to No. 7 in the Race to Dubai. (The top 10 not otherwise exempt at season’s end earn full-time cards on the PGA Tour.)

He will not need to wait that long now, however, as he and Matt teamed up in memorable fashion at TPC Louisiana in New Orleans. After setting the 54-hole scoring record with a record 15-under 57 in Round 3, the Fitzpatricks fought their games and their nerves in the final round.

Coming into Sunday with a commanding four-stroke lead at 30 under, they looked as steady as ever early in the proceedings. Matt hit a beautiful bunker shot on the par-5 2nd to set up a tap-in birdie for Alex as the two indulged in an initial diet of fairways and greens to fend off the charges of their foes.

Austin Eckroat and Davis Thompson were pegged as the team to apply the pressure overnight, but rather it was the Norwegian duo of Ventura and Reitan who surged up the leaderboard. After two birdies in their first six holes, Ventura and Reitan caught fire with a birdie on No. 7, a hole-out eagle on No. 8 and another eagle bomb from 45 feet a few holes later on No. 11.

This run cut the Fitzpatricks’ lead to just two as the Englishmen made their way to the back nine. It vanished just a few holes later as Smalley and Springer made their move. Playing in the penultimate group, the Americans opened their back nine with three birdies across the first four holes, which coincided with the Fitzpatricks’ faltering.

Matt topped his second shot into No. 11 en route to a par-5 birdie as the cracks began to reveal themselves. The world No. 3 blocked his drive right on No. 12, leading to a double bogey, launched a wedge long of the green on No. 13 and missed the green with a 6 iron on No. 14.

From 33 under to 30 under in less than an hour, the Fitzpatricks brought a handful of teams back into the mix as the struggles persisted. Those included the Norwegians who carded one last eagle on the par-5 18th (their third of the round) to card a 7-under 65 and post the clubhouse lead at 30 under.

That is where Smalley and Springer stood as well, but a 3-putt bogey arrived on their scorecard on the par-3 17th, making their birdie on the last one to tie the lead at 30 under instead of taking it.

This set the stage for the Fitzpatricks on No. 18; despite struggling, they never relinquished the lead on Sunday. With the mark set in the clubhouse, the two were greenside in two in need of an up-and-down for the win. Matt nipped out their third to 14 inches, giving Alex the putt to seal the win, his PGA Tour card and a triumph alongside his big brother. Grade: A+

Here are the rest of the notable teams on the leaderboard at the 2026 Zurich Classic.

T2. Kristoffer Reitan & Kris Ventura (-30): They came out of nowhere on Sunday, putting three eagles on the scorecard for a final-round 65, which tied the low mark in alternate shot for the week. Ventura had missed five straight cuts, while Reitan continues a nice run of form with two top 10s sandwiching a solid debut at the Masters. Grade: A

T10. Ben Griffin & Andrew Novak (-26): The reigning champions have not had seasons like 2025, but they both are moving in the right direction with this solid defense effort being another step. Novak and Griffin played the alternate shot format in a respectable 8-under fashion but were put behind the eight ball with their opening 65 in the four-ball format. Griffin now has four straight top-35 finishes with this his first top 10 of 2026, while Novak has three top 20s in three of his last four tournaments. Grade: B+

T20. Wyndham Clark & Taylor Moore (-23): These two explosive talents had the goods in half the rounds with dueling 68s in alternate shot, but they were unable to find the ceiling in either of the four-ball rounds. The result was enough to keep both players inside the top 70 of the FedEx Cup standings as Clark continues to slowly but surely rediscover his game. The former U.S. Open champion now has three straight top-21 finishes to his credit. Grade: B

T25. Luke Clanton & Blades Brown (-21): They needed to squeeze a bit more out of their four-ball rounds as they were only 14 under across those 36 holes, but still, it is a result that should provide confidence for both. Brown has come agonizingly close to winning on both the PGA Tour and Korn Ferry Tour the last couple of months, while Clanton has been a ghost. The 22-year-old entered this week with only one top-60 finish to his credit. It has been a struggle since he turned professional, but an outing like this has changed seasons before and could do the same for the powerful right-hander. Grade: C

MC. Brooks Koepka & Shane Lowry: The two major champions were unable to overcome a sluggish opening round of four-ball that produced a score of just 6 under. Coming back with a round of 3 under in alternate shot, Koepka and Lowry ultimately fell on the wrong side of the cutline by a single stroke. The scoring was always going to be the issue for this duo, as both have struggled with the putter at various points the last two years, and that continued into this week. Koepka will continue the waiting game as an alternate for the signature events, while Lowry continues to find that form that carried him into contention at the Masters. Grade: F 

Updates
(43)

Comments

Leave a Reply