Fleetwood Withdraws From French Open With Illness as Fitzpatrick Leads by Five
5 sourcesUpdated Sep 26, 2026
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Tommy Fleetwood withdrew from the $3.75M Open de France at Le Golf National ahead of Saturday's third round due to illness. He stood at 6-under after rounds of 69 and 67. The move came just before his 11:23 a.m. local tee time, when he was grouped with Sam Bairstow and Joe Dean, both also at 6-under. Organizers posted on the DP World Tour website that he sadly had to withdraw due to illness, with no further details given. In pre-tournament comments Fleetwood said, "I have some incredibly special memories playing in France, and Le National Golf is a course I hold really close to my heart." He won at the course in 2017, remains with Francesco Molinari the last player unbeaten in Ryder Cup play there, and took silver at the 2024 Olympics on the same layout. He entered the week ranked World No. 9, down from a career-high No. 3 in December 2025. Matt Fitzpatrick held a five-shot lead after a 6-under 65. Jeff Winther of Denmark had been one shot back before the third round. No additional information on the illness was released.
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Hope Fleetwood recovers soon but this opens the door for Fitzpatrick to claim the title.
Fitzpatrick's round of 65 to open a five shot lead looks very convincing on this course.
Fleetwood was sitting nicely at six under so it's a shame illness forced him out before the weekend.
