Tommy Fleetwood praises fan support and stays optimistic despite near miss

British rhythm and blues boom musicians

Tommy Fleetwood once again came close but fell short of his first PGA Tour victory at the 2025 FedEx St. Jude Championship. The English golfer had an advantage before the last round, but in the end he fell short of the victory, finishing as T3, together with Scottie Scheffler. 

This tournament brought a tense and exciting finish, with Justin Rose, celebrating a playoff victory over J.J. Spaun.

This was Fleetwood's 43rd top-10 finish without a win, the most among active players. 

Speaking to the media, Fleetwood shared his optimism about the future, especially praising fans who emphasize how great Fleetwood's positivity is.

Tommy enjoyed the atmosphere of this tournament.

"Well, as long as they stay with me and stay on my side, then we can all look for the positives. Yeah, I'm lucky with the support that I get, and I have enjoyed — I haven't been in contention much this year, and then Travelers obviously leading and I felt like it was a great atmosphere and I enjoyed playing in that atmosphere and then today again I get the crowd on my side and I love their support. I'm so appreciative of it. Kind of on this journey together here.

You just have to keep — all these experiences and these close calls, like I say, there's no point in making or allowing them to have a negative effect on what happens next. What would be the point?"- he said.

Tommy Fleetwood looked up to Justin Rose

Fleetwood admitted that as a boy he looked up to Justin Rose, the winner of this tournament. Tommy is most impressed with Rose's dedication and passion for golf. 

Fleetwood has nothing against his victory; even put on; he enjoys because he lives in the era of Justin Rose, a golfer who shows that age is no barrier if you are hungry and eager to succeed.

Scottie Scheffler wants to expand his festival

BMW

The PGA Tour season enters its final stretch this Thursday. The FedEx St. Jude Championship kicks off, the first of three tournaments that will determine the 2025 FedEx Cup champion.

Three separate events—this week's St. Jude, next week's BMW Championship, and the Tour Championship in two weeks' time—will determine the victory of the tour's annual season. The winner of the Tour Championship will claim the tour title. On the other hand, this PGA Tour playoff is scheduled weeks before the Ryder Cup.

Scottie Scheffler, results

The points for the winners of these tournaments are quadrupled compared to the regular season tournaments, so 2,000 are distributed to the winners in the first two events, before the Tour Championship decides the champion. Furthermore, the various tournaments, which are played without a cut, are eliminatory: of the seventy participants at St. Jude, only the top fifty in the annual rankings will advance to the BMW. After that, the cut will be set at thirty for the final Tour Championship.

The winner of that last tournament will be taken into account to determine the FedEx Cup champion. However, as a novelty this season, the players' starting scores will not be taken into account the annual tour ranking. Everyone will start at par.

Thus, a total of seventy players, the best of the season in the FedEx Cup, have secured a ticket to a FedEx St. Jude tournament to be played at TPC Southwind in Memphis this weekend. All eyes will be on one man: Scottie Scheffler. The American, a strong favorite for the final victory of the season, enters this tournament as the solid leader of the annual rankings and in peak form.

The British Open champion just under three weeks ago, Scheffler returns with all eyes on him. He has won four of his last eight tournaments and hasn't dropped out of the top 10 since The Players in March. A testament to his absolute consistency.

As if that weren't enough, he's seeking his second consecutive FedEx Cup, a feat no one has achieved since the format's launch in 2007. It would be another milestone for a player who continues to shape the future of golf, with two majors (he also won the PGA Championship) and four wins this year, and is poised to be at full strength for the Ryder Cup in a few weeks.

Furthermore, Scheffler (4,806 points in the standings) will not have his greatest rival in the fight for the FedEx Cup, Rory McIlroy (3,444), in the opening tournament, which reaffirms his favoritism for this first tournament. The American and Northern Irishman have a solid grip on the top two spots in the annual rankings heading into the final tournament, a situation that has led a tired McIlroy to save his energy for the next two weeks.

Thus, Scheffler's biggest rivals in the first tournament are Sepp Straka (2,595 points), Russell Henley (2,391), and Justin Thomas (2,280). The world number one is aiming to make the final push to distance all his rivals by more than 2,000 points before the BMW Championship and, with that, lock down that top spot heading into the final event.

Of course, there will be no shortage of other big names. J.J. Spaun, Tommy Fleetwood, Viktor Hovland, Collin Morikawa, Xander Schauffele, Justin Rose, and Hideki Matsuyama are, among others, candidates to win this first tournament beyond the annual rankings. Players like Matthew Fitzpatrick, Schauffele, and Jordan Spieth are nearing the top 50 positions that qualify for the BMW Championship, so there's a lot at stake starting this week.