Tommy Fleetwood’s wife Clare missed his historic triumph at the Tour Championship at the weekend, but was able to join in the celebrations thanks to Justin Rose
Tommy Fleetwood etched his name into golfing history with a stunning maiden PGA Tour victory at the Tour Championship. But amid the champagne sprays and roaring crowds, one key figure was conspicuously absent from the 18th green: his wife and manager, Clare Fleetwood.
Instead, it was Tommy’s stepson, Oscar Craig, who dashed out for an emotional embrace as the rest of the family celebrated from afar. But in a heartwarming twist, Justin Rose ensured Clare didn’t miss out entirely – he rung her up for a jubilant FaceTime call right in the thick of the festivities.
The scene unfolded like a feel-good movie moment. Rose, a 12-time PGA Tour event winner and Fleetwood’s Ryder Cup team-mate, grabbed his phone alongside his own wife, Kate Phillips, to share the triumph with her. During the conversation, Rose turned the screen to the adoring crowd, who erupted in cheers upon seeing Clare’s beaming face.
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“So excited for you guys,” Rose could be heard telling Clare, in a clip uploaded to Instagram by the PGA Tour. “I told you. It was so easy to say that when it happened it was going to be a big one. But oh my God what a good one to do it.”
The win not only secured Fleetwood’s first PGA Tour title, but also clinched him the FedEx Cup and a whopping £7.4m ($10million) prize pot. It also means he’s finally banished the ghost of being golf’s most high-profile nearly-man, after taking part in over 160 PGA Tour events and racking up £18.5m in prize money without lifting a single trophy.
“When you’ve lost so many times, a three-shot lead down the last doesn’t feel like that many,” Fleetwood, who had tears in his eyes, joked after the winning putt. “[The fans] are amazing, it makes me a bit emotional. I’m so lucky with the support I get – it’s so special and I hope everyone knows how grateful I am for it.”
Rose, ever the class act, had even filmed Fleetwood’s nail-biting final putt, posting on X: “This felt as good as winning myself! So happy for my man @TommyFleetwood1 for enduring the relentless pressure cooker his quality golf has put him in during these playoffs and there is no more deserving champ.”
Clare’s no-show at the pivotal moment wasn’t for lack of support – she’s been Tommy’s rock since they tied the knot in 2017, doubling as his savvy manager. But the couple’s 23-year age gap – Clare is 57, Tommy 34 – thrust them into the spotlight.
Speaking on the Performance People podcast, Clare opened up about the early paranoia sparked by public scrutiny. “It was kind of big news in our circle so I was a little bit paranoid about all that really,” she said. “But not for any reason of our relationship and I had full faith once we fell in love.”
Family ties run deep in the Fleetwood clan. Oscar, 17, sported a matching shirt as he hugged his stepdad, a poignant reminder of their tight-knit unit.
Tommy gushed after his win: “I’m so blessed with the family that I have and the love that surrounds me and the support that I get that it just makes everything that much easier really, whether it goes good or bad.”
He added: “Whatever would have happened today, I would have walked off the 18th hole, and Oscar would have given me a hug. And we’d have gone home, and everything would have been great.”
Even in hypothetical defeat, Tommy emphasised: “I would have been gutted, we’d all been gutted and hurt a little bit, but life would still have been great.”
For Fleetwood, his win at the Tour Championship wasn’t just about the win or even getting the trophy monkey off his back – it was also a testament to resilience and camaraderie in a cutthroat sport. His long overdue triumph, clinched under intense pressure, proves once and for all that, sometimes, nice guys finish first.