Matt Fitzpatrick's epic bunker shot clinches Tour card for younger brother

Matt Fitzpatrick's epic bunker shot clinches Tour card for younger brother Getty Images Most weeks on the PGA Tour, the results of victory are best measured in millions of dollars. Just not this week, at the Zurich Classic. The biggest impact of this week’s event was always of a different form — it would mean full PGA Tour membership for someone who didn’t have it, as numerous non-PGA Tour winners found themselves in contention.

Littered among the pack was one of the best golfers on the planet , Matt Fitzpatrick, paired up with his younger brother , Alex. Even if Alex isn’t a top 5 player in the world, he’s been playing like one of the 100 best in recent months. He is no slouch, as evidenced by his recent win on the DP World Tour, but he was not a Tour member when he woke up Sunday morning, earning entry as a sponsor’s exemption.

But as Sunday played out and tension increased on the back nine, the Brothers Fitzpatrick seemed to grow tight. They turned to the back nine with a four-shot lead but surrendered it in an hour’s time. Two different duos reached the clubhouse at 30 under and tied for the lead.

But the Fitzpatrick’s would have the last chance to end it in regulation. Matt ripped a drive 322 yards into the fairway, offering Alex a hero moment. But younger brother — after carrying his brother, according to Matt at least, on the back nine — dumped his 9-wood into the greenside bunker short of the hole.