The major golf season got underway in April with the US Masters, as world number one Scottie Scheffler walked away with the first grand prize of the year.
This meant that the United States continued their domination at the biggest events and that their transatlantic sporting rival England’s wait for a major champion was extended.
The nation has not been able to boast of a winner at the peak level since Matt Fitzpatrick’s US Open win in 2022. Before that, there was an even longer wait of six years for English success following Danny Willett’s 2016 win at the Masters Tournament.
In 2024 though, with three major competitions yet to take place, several England stars have an outside chance of ensuring the latest title drought does not exceed two calendar years.
Tommy Fleetwood
Tommy Fleetwood has improved massively throughout 2023 and the beginning of 2024 which has put him on the verge of a place in the top 10 world rankings ahead of the PGA Championship in May. In a bet on PGA this year, he is offered at 28/1 to win the event which makes him England’s greatest hope in the next major meeting.
Scottie Scheffler is the outright favourite in a bet on golf at odds of 3/1 and it will be tough even for the most experienced players to break his momentum ahead of the summer.
Tommy Fleetwood appreciation post 😄 pic.twitter.com/MkhF2cx7TY
— DP World Tour (@DPWorldTour) April 15, 2024
Fleetwood’s greatest chance of success in regards to the overall year will most likely come at the final event in the Open Championship in July. He is offered at 22/1 to win the event which places him in the top six early frontrunners for the tournament.
The golfer from Merseyside has finished in the top 10 in the British-hosted competition on three occasions. He famously finished second in 2019 and considering he is now showing signs of entering his prime, improving on his past standing at Royal Troon in July is a genuine possibility.
Fleetwood is without doubt England’s most consistent and leading player overall at present and much of the nation’s hopes will rightly be placed on him leading up to the final major event of the year.
Matt Fitzpatrick
Matt Fitzpatrick has endured a contrasting start to 2024 compared to Fleetwood. He tumbled down the the world rankings from eighth place at the end of 2023, to 14th in the final week of April.
However, he is still one of England’s leading stars, he may not carry the level of momentum that Fleetwood possesses, but he has been historically strong at one of the upcoming major events.
Really happy with how I battled last week, Saturday and Sunday on the back 9 at Sawgrass were really big for me.
Having felt like I needed to kick start my season a bit it was just what I wanted. Hopefully keep working hard and push on now! pic.twitter.com/lZN0vAX85e
— Matt Fitzpatrick (@MattFitz94) March 19, 2024
The Sheffield-born player’s greatest moment came at the 2022 US Open where he won his first-ever major title. He gained vital experience in winning under the greatest pressure as he defeated current number one Scheffler by a single stroke.
This year he is offered at 25/1 to replicate that success in the latest US Open meeting which places him in the top 10 in the early odds markets. Like Fleetwood, he will be an outsider throughout this year, but he has one event where a potential triumph would not require quite as much of a shock.
Fleetwood and Fitzpatrick are ultimately England’s highest-ranked players and for that reason, the greatest chances of major success for the nation in 2024 resides with them. Fleetwood could win his first major and Fitzpatrick could write himself into history as a multiple-time champion.
