The Genesis Scottish Open management came up with a fun challenge as professionals took the smallest driver. That quickly turned into a battle for bragging rights for Matt Fitzpatrick. The English professional found a cheeky way to needle Rory McIlroy just days before the Open Championship.

The DP World Tour shared the video of Fitzpatrick taking on the challenge on Instagram.

“You put his shaft in that mini driver?” he asked when another speaker told him that the management reshafted the mini driver and put the Northern Irishman’s shaft in it. “So, just playing into his hands. All right, seems super fair. Here, there’s a shaft in my bag. If you don’t mind reshafting it, then I’ll have a go. It’s a bit bigger than the same. Just crank the loft on it a bit more. I need a bit more.

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“Oh, wow. Rory McIlroy, eat your heart out,” Fitzpatrick said quietly, after lofting the ball through the air.

Matt Fitzpatrick and Rory McIlroy are long‑standing friends and Ryder Cup teammates. Even when competing against each other on golf courses, they are friends first. Therefore, when one wins and the other loses, they remove their caps and shake hands with a smile on their faces.

When the English professional beat the career Grand Slam winner at the 2025 DP World Tour Championship, he went out of his way to call McIlroy “one of the best players, if not the best player in the world.”

Fitzpatrick even praised the Northern Irishman in an Instagram post about his victory.

“This one’s always special @dpwtc! Proud of the way I finished the year. Thank you to my wife, family, and team for your support always. And congratulations to @rorymcilroy always fun to compete with you mate!” he wrote in the caption.

The jab lands perfectly because he took it right after hitting with a mini driver that had the six-time major winner’s shaft on it. McIlroy is one of the biggest drivers of golf balls. Like almost every year, he ranks 1st on the PGA Tour for SG: Off-the-Tee. This season, his longest drive so far is 405 yards, and his average driving distance is 328.2 yards.

The 30-time PGA Tour winner also pokes Matt Fitzpatrick whenever he gets a chance. For instance, after winning the 2025 Ryder Cup, McIlroy revealed that the English pro is a “numbers man” and not a party leader. And that reflected in the Genesis Scottish Open video shared by the DP World Tour, too. In the video, Fitzpatrick is seen asking management for the exact distance of his drive to the decimal place.

While he was all fun and poking Rory McIlroy at the Scottish Open 2026, he became focused on his game after arriving at Royal Birkdale. But he is worried about the chance he may get distracted, and it has nothing to do with his focus.

Matt Fitzpatrick joins a growing chorus of golfers worried about betting

Many professionals have recently said that betting is a huge factor behind the rude fan behavior. After Wyndham Clark faced severe heckling during the final round of the US Open 2026, Jordan Spieth said gambling could be the reason. He pointed out that betting gets fans more involved. And since fans are very close to professionals, they can easily influence the game.

Rory McIlroy took a neutral stand on the topic. When asked if he thinks betting is behind all this, he said that while it may be a factor, not all fans are the same. While he himself has experienced fans saying bad things to him because of betting, he said that it is a rare scenario.

Now, Matt Fitzpatrick has chimed in on the conversation.

“I would say every golfer that’s played a professional tournament has had a message of abuse from someone that is related to gambling,” he said ahead of the Open Championship.

He even pointed out that these heckles are not limited to golf courses. A golfer whom fans have bet against faces abuse on social media, too. He echoed similar sentiments to those of other golfers. He also noted that the issue is particularly severe in golf because it is easy to influence the game.