‘Full Swing’ Episode 5 recap: Matt Fitzpatrick lives out the American Dream

Check out our Episode 4 recap here.

Matt Fitzpatrick is not like a lot of other golfers. This is made brutally (and hilariously) clear when he is paired with 6-foot-4 Dustin Johnson at the 2022 U.S. Open. Skinny, short Fitzy walking stride by stride with Johnson is quite the image — made even more striking when Fitzgerald starts driving tee shots further than DJ can.

One of the game’s most technical players, Fitzgerald found plenty of success on the European Tour early in his career, but struggled to separate himself from the pack across the pond in America — that is, until the U.S. Open. The mild-mannered guy from Sheffield made his impact with that win, after years and years of meticulous work to improve.

Fitzgerald has tracked every shot he’s ever taken. He has boxes of old notebooks in his home that he pulls out for the camera. He’s practically scientific about it all as he makes small adjustments to make up for what he could be said to lack in size and strength.

Dustin Johnson is the secondary character of this episode. He goes full DJ here, too cool to care and very straight-up about his decision to leave the PGA TOUR and join LIV Golf. That decision shook the foundation of the PGA, which is somewhat glossed over in the episode, as he was still considered in his prime and a top competitor. He says it frankly — he wanted the money, and if anyone didn’t take that offer, there’s “something wrong with you.”

The comparison between these two doesn’t necessarily resonate — it feels like two separate episodes at some points, a fully-formed idea about Fitzpatrick with some random DJ stuff thrown in there.

Full Swing is available to watch on Netflix. All episodes are out now.