The Open: Matt Fitzpatrick dunks in spectacular chip shot for birdie

Matt Fitzpatrick made a miraculous birdie on the 16th hole during the first round of The Open Championship at Royal Portrush on Thursday. 

Fitzpatrick, 30, hit a wayward iron shot that left him 13 yards away from the pin and down a hill. When he lined up to hit his second shot, he was well below the hole.

Despite having a difficult shot, Fitzpatrick dunked in his chip shot for a birdie. The English golfer could not have landed his shot more perfectly, as it clanked off the bottom of the flag and into the hole. 

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Matt Fitzpatrick of England acknowledges the crowd on the 18th green during day one of the 153rd Open Championship at Royal Portrush Golf Club on July 17, 2025 in Portrush, Northern Ireland. (Christian Petersen/Getty Images)

The birdie moved Fitzpatrick into a tie for first place at 4-under par. Fitzpatrick is tied with Jacob Skov Olesen and Haotong Li, who are at the time of this writing atop the leaderboard.

Fitzpatrick started the day well with an eagle on the second hole. He immediately gave one stroke back with a bogey on the third hole.

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Matt Fitzpatrick of England plays off the 1st hole during the first round of the British Open golf championship at the Royal Portrush Golf Club, Northern Ireland, on Thursday, July 17, 2025. (AP Photo/Jon Super)

However, that bogey would be Fitzpatrick’s lone bogey of the day, as he had a par or better on every hole after that. 

Fitzpatrick had been playing strong golf coming into The Open, as he finished in a tie for eighth in the Rocket Classic at the end of June and finished in a tie for fourth at the Scottish Open last week. 

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Matt Fitzpatrick of England plays from the rough on the 7th hole during the first round of the British Open golf championship at the Royal Portrush Golf Club, Northern Ireland, on Thursday, July 17, 2025. (AP Photo/Francisco Seco)

Fitzpatrick has two career PGA Tour wins, with one of them coming in a major, as he won the 2022 U.S. Open. The last tournament he won was the RBC Heritage in 2023. 

Fitzpatrick attended Northwestern University and turned pro in 2014. 

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