The PGA TOUR announced today that Matthew Fitzpatrick of England has accepted Special Temporary Membership for the remainder of the 2018-19 PGA TOUR Season.
Fitzpatrick, who is the highest-ranked player in the Official World Golf Ranking without full-time PGA TOUR membership (No. 33), brings the total number of active international TOUR members to 89 from 26 countries. Forty-six of the top 50 players in the world are now TOUR members.
Following a runner-up result at the Arnold Palmer Invitational presented by Mastercard, Fitzpatrick earned enough Non-Member FedExCup points required to earn Special Temporary Membership for the second consecutive season. In all, Fitzpatrick has made 46 career starts on TOUR with four top-10s.
Fitzpatrick, 24, becomes the first player to join the TOUR as a Special Temporary Member during the 2018-19 season after being one of three (Fitzpatrick, Joaquin Niemann, Kiradech Aphibarnrat) last season. In 2017-18, he came up 76 Non-Member FedExCup points short of earning his TOUR card for this season.
As a Special Temporary Member, Fitzpatrick is eligible for unlimited sponsor exemptions for the remainder of the 2018-19 season as he attempts to earn his PGA TOUR card for the 2019-20 season through the Non-Member FedExCup Points List.
Special Temporary Members are not eligible for the FedExCup Playoffs, but Special Temporary Members or non-members who subsequently become regular PGA TOUR members by winning an official event during the season will be counted on the FedExCup points list, along with any FedExCup points earned as a non-member (excluding those won at World Golf Championships events as a non-member) and thus be eligible for the FedExCup Playoffs.
