Behind Tommy Fleetwood’s rock-star looks there is a cold-eyed determination and the Englishman is keen to progress in his career and use this week’s Omega Dubai Desert Classic to get back into the swing of things ahead of a busy campaign.
“I’m always looking to improve and coming to Dubai is perfect because you can’t really get too tired of coming here,” said Fleetwood. “As these last couple of weeks have progressed I’m enjoying practicing more and more and getting into the swing of things for the year.”
Fleetwood’s goals are clear – continue to improve and contend in the Majors. “The Majors are the weeks that are career-defining, in a way,” he said. “When they come around, I won’t be playing the week before a Major this year apart from the British Masters which I’m hosting, which is before the US PGA Championship.
“This year, there’s still things I need to do in my game. If I just focus on my game and focus on areas of my game I want to improve that will make me the golfer that I kind of envision in a few years time, then I’ll stick to that and hopefully that will press me in the right direction.
“I’m really not looking at results. Every week, you clearly want to win; everybody does, but I don’t really want to pick out too much and put pressure on, I’ll just try to be a golfer and hopefully things will take care of themselves.”
“Last year I felt like I played well in the Majors so that’s something that I’ll take forward. I would love to give myself the best possible chance in the Majors.” – Tommy Fleetwood
Fleetwood has made just one top-ten finish from six previous appearances at Emirates Golf Club but managed to produce a best-ever performance of tied-sixth last season and he is keen to improve his record in Dubai.
“It’s funny because last year I felt like I played awful around here and it’s my best result ever on the golf course. Overall I feel sharp. Things are moving in the right direction so hopefully it bodes well because I’ve always loved this golf course.”
Fleetwood will tee off from the tenth tee alongside Sergio Garcia and Bryson DeChambeau at 8:00 local time on Thursday morning.
It’s time for the 30th anniversary of the Omega Dubai Desert Classic 😍#ODDC2019 pic.twitter.com/CuiOO5uAzs
— The European Tour (@EuropeanTour) January 21, 2019