Matt Fitzpatrick knows exactly what it takes to win a Major championship. You must to be consistent, you need a bit of luck, and you have to take your chances when they come.
That is exactly what happened at The Country Club, Brookline in 2022 when the Englishman saw off Will Zalatoris and Scottie Scheffler to win the US Open by a solitary stroke.
His record in the other three biggest events on the calendar is perfectly admirable, too, with the Open Championship standing as the sole Major in which Fitzpatrick is yet to pin down a top-10 (his best result was T20 in 2019).
The 29-year-old's quest to better his stand-out finishes in golf's biggest tournaments begins in the coming days when The Masters begins at Augusta National Golf Club on April 11. Fitzpatrick ended the 2023 running in a tie for 10th, while his best-ever result there was T7 in 2016.
The two-time PGA Tour winner has only missed the cut once in nine visits to The Masters, and that occurred on his first attempt in 2014 - completely understandable. Since then, he has recorded 14 rounds under par and has a scoring average of 72.09.
So what does Fitzpatrick believe is the key aspect behind performing well at Augusta? Which area of the game should a player pay particular attention to if they are to stand a chance of contending on Sunday?
Speaking exclusively to Golf Monthly's Sam De'Ath, Fitzpatrick shared his thoughts. He said: "I mean, listen, you've got to do every part of your game well. I think approach play is probably the biggest thing. If you look at the historic winners, the people who have won there, they've hit their irons fantastically.
"They've hit it at the right part of the green, they've hit it close, and they've made the putts to go along with that. I definitely think [approach play] is a big factor, but it all starts with the tee shot, so you've got to make sure you're in play in the first place. It's a combination of everything, in my opinion."
Speaking of combinations, Fitzpatrick is currently set up with a variety of different manufacturers throughout the bag after choosing to become an equipment free agent.
Discussing his dislike of changing equipment regularly, the Ryder Cup winner shared what he looks for when deciding on the right clubs to take out onto the course in competition.
He said: "I hate changing equipment, just because you want to use the stuff that's tried and tested under tournament conditions. There's always a hesitancy when you put something new in - is it going to perform or not?
"What I look for in particular is - drivers are pretty easy, you want it straight and long and you want it to feel good. Irons are always going to be PING for me.
"The areas I struggle the most is with fairway woods. At the minute, I've got a Cobra 3 Wood and a Titleist hybrid. Both brands that I've not necessarily used in fairway woods before, and I'm still almost trying to get used to them, really.
"It's definitely something that crosses my mind - is there a better option in 3 Wood and hybrid, but I feel like I've been pretty comfortable with what I've got this year."
Matt was talking to Golf Monthly via Skechers. Fitzpatrick is set to wear a special Masters edition of Skechers' Go Golf Blade SE shoe at Augusta National which will be publicly available to buy.
