It looks like Robin Hood has finally gone digital. After finishing 12th at the British Open at Carnoustie last month, the European Tour paid Tommy Fleetwood the appropriate $154,500. The only problem? It was the wrong Tommy Fleetwood.
The money was sent to ... some guy, according to a screenshot from Twitter user @GregThornerGolf. He even has the receipts.
No joke, a friend received Tommy Fleetwood's Open Championship winnings in his bank account last weekend!! They have the same name and he was a PGA pro but still, how does this happen? Didn't believe him until I saw it...good thing he is an honest guy! pic.twitter.com/bE534xfYDV
— #Break30 Golf Short Game School (@GregThornerGolf) August 8, 2018
What would you do if this money was deposited in your account? By the sound of it, the non-Open Tommy Fleetwood is actually a pro golfer in Florida, according to The Guardian. He was born in 1959, and reportedly has tried to qualify for senior events in Europe.
"He called it up and looked at his statement, and that's when he shouted 'Holy smoke, I've just had $154,000 paid into my account,'" Greg Thorner -- the poster of the screenshot -- said, per The Guardian. "He got on to his bank immediately and they didn't know what to say. That's when I realized that it must be for the other Tommy Fleetwood and I quickly worked out that it was his Open winnings.
"I think what happened was that he played some Challenge Tour events on the European Tour back in the day and they must still have his details on file. At least he can always say he won $150,000 at the Open."
Open Tommy Fleetwood, meanwhile, wasn't sweating the mistake.
"I honestly didn't know anything about it," he told The Guardian. "I wouldn't even know if I'd been paid or not because I don't really look. It looks pretty genuine and they are looking into it and I'm sure they'll feel pretty bad about it. It's a funny story."
In that case, he probably won't mind if non-Open Tommy Fleetwood just holds onto the cash.
