“When you have lost it so many times, a three‑shot down the last doesn’t feel that many,” Tommy Fleetwood said jokingly when he finally won the FedEx Cup after 164 tour attempts. The victory sparked global recognition for Fleetwood; from LeBron James to Tiger Woods, everyone congratulated the Englishman. It must be an extraordinary feeling, to say the least. But as all celebrations do, Fleetwood’s celebration has also met a sobering reality.

It all started through Fleetwood’s appearance on the Fore Play Podcast Plus and an objection to Trent. Right as the formalities were over, Fleetwood quickly said, “Hey, actually, I saw um on uh your Instagram story, Trent saying that um something about hating me come to radical.” And Trent answered that with a question, “Oh, see these are the clips we put out that just get picked out of the podcast. That was the takeaway from that show. I guess so. I was saying and you know we love you. We have so much love for you. You’re our favorite guy on planet Earth. I was just saying that a month from now things might be a little bit different. Do you disagree with that?”

Fleetwood came out with honesty, “I expect it better. It’s the first bump in the road for us that trend.” And then Trent emphasized, “Man, that is going to keep me up tonight. I’m team USA the whole way. I was just saying it’s it’s very funny because the amount of people and we were included who were just so happy for you to get that win and then again in a month in New York I just want you to be ready that you know all these Americans LeBron James, Caitlyn Clark, everybody’s rooting for you for this win and I was too but in a month from now everybody’s going to turn their back on you. That is a fact.”

It was a reality check, one that underscores the Ryder Cup’s unique ability to transform fan favorites into rivals overnight. For Fleetwood, who has long been admired for his consistency and likability, the shift will be especially sharp. His long-awaited victory may have drawn universal praise, but when he tees it up at Bethpage Black, on the opponent’s turf, even those who celebrated him, from celebrities like Caitlin Clark and LeBron James to everyday golf fans, will be firmly in the American corner. To which Fleetwood said, “Yeah. Okay. I can accept that.” 

Tommy Fleetwood’s 2025 win at the Tour Championship was more than a career milestone; it felt like a global sigh of relief. In 164 PGA Tour starts, he’d been runner-up six times and third another six, becoming the PGA Tour’s most-consistent near-miss artist. Yet on August 24, 2025, he finally broke through and captured his first PGA Tour title, the FedExCup, and a $10 million payday in one big swoop!

And that reality check, as brutal as it sounded, only exists because of the Ryder Cup; the one event that flips American fans from cheering Fleetwood’s brilliance to rooting against him.

Will Tommy Fleetwood receive the same love at the Ryder Cup?

Fleetwood has earned about $33.4 million in PGA Tour career earnings and has piled up 30 top-five finishes worldwide, but the label of ‘best player without a win on Tour’ has followed him for years. And yet, for all the doubts about his individual record, Fleetwood’s Ryder Cup history tells a different story. Since making his debut in 2018 at Le Golf National, Fleetwood has become one of Team Europe’s most reliable performers. That year, paired with Francesco Molinari, he went for a perfect 4–0 in their matches and became the first-ever European rookie to do so. It also led to the duo’s nickname, ‘Moliwood.’

In simpler words, the same American fans who cheered the European after his glory, will be the ones to boo him as well. Individually, his Ryder Cup numbers are even stronger. Fleetwood owns a record of seven wins, three losses, and two ties, converting 66.7% of all possible points for Europe. That success adds up to eight total points, which places him nineteenth on the all-time European points list, ahead of many iconic names who played the event for decades. His consistency in pairs matches has made him one of Europe’s most dependable contributors. For a player who admits how fickle support can be, the Ryder Cup has been his strongest rebuttal; the one place where he has never been left behind.

Fleetwood’s reminder that players are often left to face the pressure alone has a harsh reality to it, but it may not define his path forward. Fans can turn, critics may question, yet his steadiness in the Ryder Cup and beyond suggests he’s built for moments bigger than public opinion. The noise around him will come and go, but what lasts is the trust he’s earned as a competitor who answers when called. And that might just be enough to ensure that the weight of outside voices never truly decides his story.