Whatever happens Sunday, Tommy Fleetwood is pretty content with his life on and off the golf course right now.
The mellow Englishman was all smiles on Saturday as his resurgence at the DP World Tour Championship continued with a superb, successive 65 saw him soar into a share of fourth place at Jumeirah Golf Estates.
He is two shots off leader and nearest rival for the Race to Dubai series victory, Justin Rose. But having described himself as being “absolutely nowhere” in golf 18 months ago, the affable 26-year-old admits he has since done some growing up.
“It’s a massive thing. It’s the biggest thing I’ve ever tried to achieve,” Fleetwood said of his drive to win the Race to Dubai.
“I was in contention in the US Open and Mexico (runner-up in WGC-Mexico Championship) but they were like one or two rounds. This has been all year and you come down to the final event.
“A year and a half ago, I was absolutely nowhere in the game and a bit lost. Fast forward to where for me, it’s been amazing to play and to enjoy my golf this year, and then to get to this stage. It’s been an absolute pleasure and privilege trying to compete for the Race to Dubai title.”
After winning a maiden European Tour title at the Johnnie Walker Championship at Gleneagles in 2013, things started to go awry when Fleetwood tried to change his swing, having just entered the top 50 in the world rankings, searching to become “a world-class golfer”.
Instead both his form and love for the game plummeted. He returned to his old coach, Alan Thompson, and old caddie, Ian Finnis, and things gradually improved.
“I’m a little bit more grown up now,” he added.
And on Sunday, he is definitely feeling the love, both from the game and his family.
“I’ve put a lot of work into the golf side of things which I had to do, my golf was nowhere near good enough,” adds the Southport native.
“I needed to do it. It’s not that I wasn’t taking my golf seriously, not at all. I’m just happy on the course, happy off it, and it’s helped.
“To me I have the best life ever. I know that whatever happens tomorrow my baby’s there, my fiancee’s there, mum and dad will be there and everybody’s happy and everybody loves me.
“Win or not I’m doing a great job of making sure my family’s happy, safe and comfortable, and that’s a really lovely feeling.”
And when asked if winning the Race to Dubai would be the highlight of his career, he was very keen to distinguish between career and personal life.
“Over my career, yeah. Nothing closest to the biggest day of my life but in my career, it is,” admitted Fleetwood.
“My baby’s there, I’ve got a wedding coming up. There’s been plenty of bigger life occasions. It will be massive in my career and I’m not going to play it down but you keep things in perspective and the work-life balance. They are intertwined but they’re separate too.”
Fleetwood alluded to dreading playing at the BMW PGA Championship at Wentworth in May 2016, possibly at his lowest ebb.
He added: “Besides my career progressing, the biggest thing is where I am from a year-and-a-half ago.
“At Wentworth (BMW PGA Championship) last year I didn’t even want to play because I was scared I wasn’t going to be able to get off the first tee, so the pressure of tomorrow won’t really feel like that. The pressure will be a lot nicer than that.”
Even though there is the inevitable pressure on Sunday – plus the almost unfathomable calculations needed to deduct the ways and means both he and Rose can win the overall series on Sunday, these days there is no dread for Fleetwood.
“You’re never going to avoid it, so I might as well keep looking and accept it,” he said if asked if he has taken out the calculator to deduct what needs to be done.
“I’d like to look and not see him (Rose) but he’s right at the top, but you’re going to have a look.
“I’ll just try and do my best tomorrow. It’d be nice to be coming down tomorrow and be in with a chance of winning the tournament.
“It’s better getting the calculator out though for this type of scenario than to work out how to keep your card like I was doing a few years ago.”
Win the lucrative Race to Dubai crown on Sunday or not, Fleetwood reiterated how much he has enjoyed playing in the tournament this year.
“Above all, whether I win it or not, or whether Justin wins it, one of us will have deserved it,” he said.
“It’s been an absolute pleasure trying to win a Race to Dubai, coming down these last few events, and especially this week now.
“The week could have gone not quite how you wanted it, not being in contention. So last day of the season and I’ve got a chance to win The Race to Dubai, it’s cool.
“If you’re not going to keep going in this situation, you’re never going to do it, if you don’t have the actual mental capacity to tell yourself to keep going when you’re trying to win The Race to Dubai. But I like to think that I have a good attitude and a good character.”
