RYDER CUP HERO Tommy Fleetwood admits this week’s Alfred Dunhill Links Championship will be a ‘return to reality’ after the highs of victory at Le Golf National on Sunday afternoon.
The Englishman played a starring role, picking up a total of four points, as Europe regained the crown from their US rivals.
Fleetwood now returns to the course at St. Andrews and speaking ahead of Thursday’s opening round, the 27-year-old insisted he has set himself fresh targets to hit before the end of the season.
“There’s still plenty of golf to be played,” he said. “There’s still six or seven tournaments left on my schedule. There’s still certain goals that I have.
“I’d love to win again by the end of the year in December. That will be our time off and we’ll go away for Christmas and new year and really switch off for a while. For now, I’ll have to keep working.
You don’t know how you’re going to feel after the Ryder Cup. There’s such a build-up to it and it’s such an intense week, you don’t quite know what happens after it or how you feel.
“I think it’s the perfect kind of week to follow. St Andrews is my favourite course.”
As for his recuperation from the weekend, Fleetwood says he is still feeling the effects of the tournament.
“I could honestly sleep for a week, I’m sure, but I feel all right physically at the moment.”
Fleetwood also addressed the viral video he starred in alongside this year’s Open winner and Ryder Cup playing partner, Francesco Molinari.
The Italian picked up maximum points from his five matches and on the back of their victory in Paris, the pair shared a bed together alongside the Ryder Cup trophy.
Fleetwood maintains the video was ‘legitimate’.
“It was real, we just got caught,” he said to laughter among members of the press.
“I don’t know how it happened but we got caught, and it’s gone out but luckily we’ve had a good response from it. But me and Fran have been caught out a little bit there.”
Of the pairs performance, he said: “It was great for us to have that contribution for the team. We didn’t lead by any means.
“We were just part of that whole environment and that whole team.
“I think from Friday morning when we were at our most nervous, to have that contribution which kind of sparked a bit of momentum I think was very important.
“The ‘bromance’ has sort of come alive and it’s been a big talking point.
“Just to have our contribution to the team [recognised] I think was the most important thing for us.
“I’m very, very happy for Fran to get that winning shot, which he deserved, and making that bit of history for himself.
“Honestly he didn’t care one bit whether he got zero points or five points as long as the team won, and that’s just the way he is, really.”
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I think it’s hilarious all the hating on Robbie on this. People seem to forget he’s the only player we have who can nick a goal. Granted we have more technical strikers but it’s all about scoring and Robbie is the only source we have
Have a lot more time for Robbie than Roy, yet some people still slag Robbie and rubbish his achievements with Ireland while at the same time worshiping at the altar of Roy. Never in a million years will another Irishman ever score 66 goals for his country, and deep down we all know that.
Robbie never let us down.
To be honest I think we will be just fine without Robbie keane
If we don’t play Darren in goal, Sol won’t be happy!!
Good article but I’d have to disagree that spurs have used 4-4-2 effectively.
McGeady & McLean or Walters. Its the one position we have a few options
Walters is chronic
Forde
Coleman – Clark – O’Shea – Wilson
McCarthy – Reid – Meyler
McGeady – Long – McClean
Would be a good shout.
Randolph
O’Shea Dunne Wilson
Coleman Brady
Mccarthy Meyler
Reid
Long Keane
Brady will not play again this season so you’ll have to find someone else!
personally I think our best 11 is
Given
Coleman-Dunne-O’Shea-Brady
McCarthy-Gibson
McGeady-Hoolahan-Pilkington
Long
brady left back?! given back in nets?
randolph
coleman – oshea – wilson – delaney
mccarthy – meyler
mcgeady – hoolahan – brady
long
would be a good team for tomorrow night – our best team; im not sure what it is – but what its not
@Brendan, Brady has played left wing back for Hull for the past 2 and a bit seasons and it would be a good balance with Coleman at lb, after all Wilson is right footed so Brady would provide more delivery’s. And why not Given?hes shown in the past couple of months hes still well capable of producing great performance. Im all for Forde but his distribution can be rubbish at times
Delaney is back at his club!
… so is Brady!
I disagree that Hoolihan could only be accommodated in a 4-5-1. He could play in a 4-4-3 or a 4-2-3-1 which given the players currently available to Ireland might be the way forward. There are a few players out tomorrow with injuries but going forward my first choice Irish 11 would be
Forde
Coleman, Dunne, O’Shea, Wilson
Gibson, McCarthy
McGeady, Reid or Hoolihan, Brady
Long
I think that Pilkington could do a job on either side of the 3 as could Walters at a push.
That was meant to be 4-3-3* of course :) tho maybe we could sneak an extra player in, who knows
agreed, best looking line-up there, for the near future at least anyway.
As the article suggested, having McCarthy and Gibson sit in front of the back 4 would be great to utilize one of our best attacking options – right-back Coleman. McCarthy too has been excellent in that sitting position for Everton
Need to start playing Clark, as the only decent centre back we have under 30, the more international gametime he get the better.
Think we’d be better concentrating on the players actually available tomorrow rather than playing pie-in-the-sky selections for the future.
Hopefully it’s the last we see of Paul Green
Long up Front alone is just madness, where on earth are the goals going to come from.
Good player as part of a duo, but terrible goal scoring record at every level…..forget qualifying for anything with him up front alone.
Lewandovski is miles ahead of him.
Yeah and he plays for Poland so we ‘re fooked there boss!
I would like to see use play with wing backs with 3 in the centre of the park and 3 in the centre of defence. Has been utilised to good effect by the like of Hull and Villa recently, particularly when taking on the bigger teams giving you stability at the back and a chance to pack the midfield (both places we have struggled recently).