Golf fans SHOCKED as Matt Fitzpatrick shunned & given 33 secs US Open coverage!

DISGRACE! US Open champion Matt Fitzpatrick was not even one of the nominations for BBC SPOTY.

Andy Roberts's picture
Wed, 21 Dec 2022
Golf fans SHOCKED as Matt Fitzpatrick's US Open win given 30 seconds of coverage

Golf fans are up in arms this evening after England's Matt Fitzpatrick was not only bypassed as a nomination for BBC Sports Personality of the Year, but his memorable US Open victory was given a grand total of 33 seconds of coverage.

Fitzpatrick, 28, won his first major on American soil in June following a narrow one-shot victory over Scottie Scheffler and Will Zalatoris at Brookline. 

But despite that incredible performance, Fitzpatrick was not included in the BBC SPOTY shortlist for their main award. 

Even SPOTY presenter Gary Lineker could not believe Fitzpatrick was overlooked. 

Lineker tweeted: 

"Starting rehearsals for BBC SPOTY and saw the list of contenders doesn't contain Matt Fitzpatrick [embarrassed faces]."

LIV Golf's Ian Poulter was also shocked: 

"Sorry but complete disregard for Matt Fitzpatrick makes this event a continued farce and joke.
"I experienced first hand how much of a joke this was 10 years ago. 
"Promised myself then I'd never waste time attending or watching again."

PGA Tour star and former World No.1 Justin Rose was equally annoyed: 

"One question BBC Sport SPOTY.
"What about Matt Fitzpatrick and his US Open win this year??"

Rose also won the US Open back in 2013 at Merion.

The Englishman was one of the nominees for BBC SPOTY that year, but he still did not crack the top three.

You have to go back to 1989 since the last golfer won the BBC SPOTY. 

Furthermore, only two golfers have won the BBC prize since its inauguration in 1954. 

The first golfer to win it was Wales' Dai Rees in 1957, a year in which he captained Great Britain to their first Ryder Cup success in 24 years in a 7.5-4.5 victory at Lindrick. 

Sir Nick Faldo won the award in 1989, the year of his first of three Masters titles. 

Even Rory McIlroy failed to win SPOTY in a year where he won back-to-back major titles in 2014. The Northern Irishman somehow finished second behind Lewis Hamilton. 

There were six nominees for the SPOTY award in the end on Wednesday evening, and they comprised of Beth Mead, Ben Stokes, Ronnie O'Sullivan, Jessica Gadirova, Eve Muirhead and Jake Wightman. 

Mead ended up winning the award after her involvement in helping England Women win the Euros over the summer. 

The 27-year-old, who also plays for Arsenal Ladies, becomes the first women's footballer to win the award.

Related: Fitzpatrick shuns BBC SPOTY

If Fitzpatrick not even being shortlisted was frustrating enough for golf fans and Tour pros, things escalated further when the Englishman's US Open victory was given a grand total of 33 seconds of coverage during the entire broadcast. 

There was also several seconds of coverage about McIlroy moving back to World No.1 during golf’s brief appearance. 

In total, golf received 64 seconds of coverage during the 2hr30 broadcast on BBC. 

Brilliant, cheers for that. 

Here's a look at some irate tweets: