Like father, like son. When you see Tommy Fleetwood and his boy, Frankie, walking on the green on the famous Par 3 Contest, you can tell they are a perfect team. Every year, when the famous Masters tournament begins, Frankie steals the show. He is only eight years old, but he is already the talk of the town before the 90th edition of the golf’s most heralded tournament. But before we see him play today, we have to look back at where this magical next generation of golf story actually began.

This beautiful story began on a very special day in September 2017

His dad, Tommy, was supposed to play in a big golf match called the British Masters, but he chose to stay home instead. He wanted to be right there to be by his wife Clare’s side, and to say hello to his new baby. On September 28, little Franklin was born, weighing seven pounds and six ounces.

“I wanted to give myself every chance of playing this week, but being there at the birth of your child is a special moment in anyone’s life and I would not want to miss it,” Tommy Fleetwood said.

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Tommy was so proud that he said it was the best moment of his life. From that very first day, it was clear that no matter how many trophies Tommy Fleetwood won, his biggest joy would always be his son.

“The most beautiful and proud moment of my life!” Tommy wrote on X at the time. “Franklin Fleetwood born at 12.33 on 28/9/17 at 7pounds 6ounces.”

Though legally named Franklin, Tommy Fleetwood’s wife, Clare, had originally picked the name Frankie. And Tommy eventually settled on Franklin as the formal version while keeping ‘Frankie’ as the name everyone would come to know. Since that day, Frankie has become a seasoned traveler on the professional golf circuit.

Tommy has often described his family as his biggest supporters, and because he travels more than almost any other player, he makes an effort to have Frankie and Clare with him on the road. And over the years, Frankie’s presence on the tour has changed.

Frankie Fleetwood’s role as a toddler in a white caddie changed to an active participant

He was by his father’s side when Tommy won the Race to Dubai trophy in late 2017. And he has become a part of the locker rooms and practice greens, forming a tight-knit tour child group with Rory McIlroy’s daughter, Poppy, and Shane Lowry’s daughter, Iris. While he was always a favorite among the players, Frankie’s true arrival in the global spotlight began at the Augusta National Par 3 Contest.

In 2022, at just four years old, he first went viral as a caddie for his dad, capturing hearts as he lined up putts with professional focus. However, it was the 2024 and 2025 contests that cemented his status as a media star. In 2024, Frankie famously took a shot on the 120-yard ninth hole at Ike’s Pond, only to see his ball splash into the water.

Tommy Fleetwood posted the video writing, “Frankie Fleetwood, ladies & gentlemen!!”

But it was his response to this failure in 2025 that truly made him a star overnight. In a Sky Sports interview that went viral across the internet, the seven-year-old offered a stunningly mature assessment of his game: “Well, I’ve been doing my hardest to get it over the green. I’ve been practicing as hard as I can. Just not reaching it this year, but I’m just trying my hardest”.

The sincerity and “pro-like vibes” of the interview left everyone, including Rory McIlroy and Shane Lowry, in hysterics.

And beyond the Masters, Frankie’s love for the game has only deepened with time. It led to some of the most emotional moments of the last season, most notably Tommy’s victory at the DP World India Championship in October 2025.

Before the event, Frankie had observed, “Do you know what you’ve never done? You’ve never won a tournament and I’ve been able to run on to the 18th green”.

Snr Fleetwood was so moved by the comment that he literally wrote it down as his goal for the week. When Tommy clinched the title, Frankie fulfilled his dream by sprinting onto the green to embrace his father, a moment Tommy claimed meant as much to him as the trophy itself.

Frankie was also a high-profile presence at the 2025 Ryder Cup at Bethpage Black. Amid a hostile environment, Frankie was spotted receiving a putting tip from Rory McIlroy.

And now, as we enter the 2026 Masters Par 3 Contest, Frankie has a singular focus: carrying the water on the ninth hole to land on the green.  Frankie’s strategy is simple. He was recently spotted at the TaylorMade equipment truck, working with technician Adrian Rietveld. In an interview with his father, he explained his logic: “I have to get it higher. So, the longer, the higher”.

Frankie Fleetwood’s life beyond the green

When he isn’t caddying or practicing his high-lofted shots, Frankie’s life is that of a typical eight-year-old. He has two more brothers named Oscar, born in 2007, and Murray (Mo), who was born shortly after, with Claire’s ex-husband, Andy Craig. They also play golf. Tommy caddied for Oscar in April 2024 when he played in the Challenge Tour. It was the same tournament in which Tommy became the youngest player to win in 2011.

Mo has also competed in several golf tournaments and won his first tournament in November 2024. The whole Fleetwood family celebrated the event with Tommy posting on Instagram, “Nobody works harder than this boy! So happy for you,”

The family lived in Dubai for four years, where Frankie attended school and was a frequent visitor to the Tommy Fleetwood Academy at Jumeirah Golf Estates. However, in March 2026, the family was forced to leave Dubai and return to England due to escalating regional conflict.

And with all of this, Frankie always comes up with something to keep his father grounded.  He once asked if a ‘famous golfer’ could take him to school because he apparently didn’t think Tommy met the criteria for celebrity. The family had to enlist 2013 U.S. Open champion Justin Rose to fulfill the request. And most recently, before the Augusta Par 3 contest 2026, when the Under the Umbrellas series host Kira K. Dixon asked if his father was a ‘pretty good’ golfer, the 8-year-old funnily said, “I guess.”