Fleetwood’s PGA Tour triumph Can Open ‘Floodgates’

Tommy Fleetwood’s first coach believes the “floodgates can open” after the Englishman landed his first American tournament victory at the Tour Championship in Atlanta.
Norman Marshall, who now runs the Tommy Fleetwood Academy at Formby Hall near Liverpool, also revealed the philosophy that was surely the bedrock of his former pupil’s $10m (£7.4m) success last Sunday.
The 34-year-old champion had endured six runner-up finishes among 30 top fives, before landing this first US title at the 164th attempt.
“We say to the children at the academy, you don’t lose – you either learn or you win,” Marshall told BBC Radio 5 Live.
“He has used these near misses as a positive. Now he’s moving forward having crossed the line.
“He’s shut a lot of doubters up, but the person he will have impressed the most is the most important person; himself. He knows he can do it.
“He’s now got a deep, deep reservoir of self-belief and confidence. He’s got the monkey off his back.
“I was discussing with my wife and we said, ‘yeah, this could open the floodgates’.”
Golf is a game with few guarantees but Fleetwood, the Olympic silver medallist in Paris, has undoubtedly corrected a confounding anomaly with this victory.
“There’s always doubt there,” he admitted after completing his win at East Lake.
“But I always sort of had belief in myself that you keep knocking on the door, you keep putting yourself up there.
“You keep playing well, keep learning from all the near misses and keep putting that into action in the next tournament or the next time you get a chance, and see what is going to happen.”