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Matt Fitzpatrick not only won his first ever major championship on Father’s Day on Sunday, he also put his name in the same conversation as the legendary Jack Nicklaus.
With his one-shot victory over world No. 1 Scottie Scheffler and American Will Zalatoris at The Country Club in Brookline, Mass., Fitzpatrick became the only player besides Nicklaus to win the U.S. Open and the U.S. Amateur at the same course. The Golden Bear first accomplished the feat at Pebble Beach.
Considering the significance of Fitzpatrick’s win, and the fact that it was the his first victory on the PGA Tour, Nicklaus took to social media to congratulate him on a job well done.
“Couldn’t be happier for a really nice young man—a terrific young man!” Nicklaus tweeted on Sunday. “One of the greatest rounds of golf I have ever seen on a final day of the US Open. Matt had the pressure on him, having never won in the United States, and came through in flying colors!”
Nicklaus continued by lauding Fitzpatrick for his second shot on the 72nd hole that put him in position to close out the victory on Sunday. The 18-time major champion called the fairway bunker shot “one of the the great iron shots under pressure I’ve ever seen.
Fitzpatrick, who finished at 6-under par, jokingly called out Nicklaus during the trophy presentation, saying that the 18-time major champ had given a hard time about not winning in the United States when he won a member-member competition at the 82-year-old’s club earlier this year.
The 27-year-old Englishman made sure to let Nicklaus know that now he’s a two-time winner in the States.
“I don’t know if Jack is listening to this but he gave me some abuse at the start of the year when I won a member-member competition at his club and he said, ‘congratulations on finally winning in the United States,’” Fitzpatrick said after his victory.
“I can go back to him now and say I’ve won twice. It’s what you grow up dreaming of winning and I’ve worked so hard for such a long time. I had the big monkey on my back of not winning over here–it’s all everybody talked about. And to do it in a major, there’s nothing better.”
Shortly after the presentation, Fitzpatrick was seen on the phone. On the other end of the line? Nicklaus himself.
“Coming from someone like Jack, it means the world,” Fitzpatrick said, per Yahoo Sports. “Sharing a record with Jack Nicklaus, is unbelievable. Especially when it is just me and him. It just makes this even more special.”
