Matt Fitzpatrick's rise to world No. 3 illustrates the power of compound improvement in golf

Is Matt Fitzpatrick the third-best player in the world? He's certainly got a case.

Fitzpatrick is one of two multiple-time winners on the PGA Tour this season, nearly claimed The Players Championship and technically sits at No. 3 in the Official World Golf Rankings behind only Scottie Scheffler and Rory McIlroy after defeating the former on the first playoff hole at the 2026 RBC Heritage on Sunday.

Are we able to believe that, one year removed from dropping to No. 85 in the world, the Englishman has rocketed up the ranks to the point that he's only behind two players who may go down as all-time greats? Two wins in his last three starts suggest as much, but Fitzpatrick's rise is hardly a consequence of those victories alone.

Rather, it can be attributed to the eighth wonder of the world -- well, golf's version of the eighth wonder of the world if Warren Buffett was a golfer instead of a legendary investor -- the power of compound improvement.

Matt Fitzpatrick's total strokes gained by season

Ever since earning his DP World Tour card for the 2015 season, Fitzpatrick has been an above-average golfer in the professional ranks. Not once has he finished a season with negative strokes gained, and only twice has he gone a full year without stepping into the winner's circle. Those two instances occurred during his rookie season on the PGA Tour in 2019 and his worst statistical season in 2024.

Perhaps more impressively, Fitzpatrick has largely improved year over year. From 2015-22, he stepped up nearly every season with this compounding success resulting in a career year that saw him contend at the PGA Championship and raise the U.S. Open trophy at The Country Club for his first major championship (and first PGA Tour win).

For most, that would have been the top, and sell-offs in 2024 and the early parts of 2025 made it appear as such for Fitzpatrick. But then, at this time last year, came the introduction of a new swing coach and the resumption of the constant improvement on which Fitzpatrick prides himself.

"It was here that I saw Mark Blackburn for the first time, and straight away, we did some stuff with my approach play," Fitzpatrick said in his winner's press conference Sunday evening. "He kind of looked at the way my … body was, strengths, weaknesses of movement, and sort of tied everything back to that.

"The biggest thing for me was the retraction of my arms, making sure they don't get long and get away from me, and that's been the biggest difference. Certainly, in terms of my approach play, it's been an unbelievable change, and just felt so good and just so much more controlled. It's just been a real positive."

Last year's PGA Championship marked the return of Fitzpatrick. A player who was assumed a lock for the European Ryder Cup team at Bethpage Black was a legitimate question mark before he answered the bell with his play down the stretch. Fitzpatrick was back on the upward swing.

In his last 25 starts dating back to his run at the Wanamaker Trophy at Quail Hollow, Fitzpatrick has three worldwide wins, eight top-five finishes, 13 top 10s and no missed cuts. Two of those triumphs came in playoffs against none other than Scheffler and McIlroy. The other came in his final start before the Masters, where the 31-year-old was on the short-list of contenders and ultimately fell flat on the greens, finishing T18.

"Definitely high confidence right now for sure. The ball is obviously going where I intend it to go," Fitzpatrick said. "But I said the last few weeks that it felt like my putter had let me down a little bit at Augusta. I didn't putt anything like I know I can. You never know what would have happened."

Still, Fitzpatrick struck the ball well at Augusta National as he has done all of 2026. His approach numbers are the highest they have ever been, putting him sixth on the PGA Tour in strokes gained approach at a figure more than 2.5 times higher than his previous best (2019). His off-the-tee numbers are currently at career highs as well, while his chipping and pitching are mimicking those of 2022. 

One week after failing to see the ball go in the hole consistently, Fitzpatrick improved thanks to some time spent with putting guru Phil Kenyon, who seemingly works with more and more players by the week. Fitzpatrick, meanwhile, has been a student for years.

"This week, the first two rounds, even Saturday, putted fantastic, made everything I looked at," Fitzpatrick said. "I just really felt comfortable."

While season-long statistics would say Fitzpatrick is going through the worst putting season of his career, it is important to remember where the play has taken place. Fitzpatrick could not buy a putt during the West Coast swing, falling in line with his historical performances with the putter during that time of the PGA Tour calendar. 

Once the tour moved to the East Coast, however, Fitzpatrick began picking his ball out of the hole more promptly. He gained about four strokes on the field with the putter at the RBC Heritage, not including those made with the blade from just off the surface.

All of the improvements came together on Hilton Head Island for Fitzpatrick. The driving, the iron play and the short game all played an integral part. If there was a weakness, it was hard to identify. But even though he may have summited the mountaintop this week, Fitzpatrick will keep doing what he does best -- find ways to get better. 

"I know there's still areas that I want to improve on," he continued. "I know it's cliché, but I know there's things that can still improve in certain areas. So that's obviously exciting, given the results I've achieved so far and what's to come."

Fitzpatrick can't help himself. He tracks every shot and every intention, something only he can measure as standard statistics fall short. It's part of his DNA and his meticulous nature. It's part of what makes Fitzpatrick, well, Fitzpatrick.

Right now, he's is one of the best players in the world -- and only getting better.