Tommy Fleetwood, the Southport-born golfer, has faced persistent jibes and scrutiny over the 23-year age gap with his wife, Clare, since they began their relationship. He is set to compete at The Open at Royal Birkdale this weekend, with the tournament running from Thursday to Sunday.
Fleetwood, 35, has been in exceptional form over the past year, securing his maiden PGA Tour victory. Now, he aims to claim a major title on home turf. However, his golfing excellence has been overshadowed by remarks from some fans about his marriage to Clare, 58.
How the Couple Met and Married
The pair met when Fleetwood was establishing himself as a professional golfer and Clare worked as his manager. Their relationship developed, and they married in the Bahamas in 2017. They share a son, Franklin, and Fleetwood is stepfather to Clare's two sons from a previous relationship.
Heckling at the Ryder Cup
At the Ryder Cup in New York in September 2025, American spectators taunted Fleetwood with comments like, "Your wife looks like my grandmother." Despite the attempts to unsettle him, Europe won the competition, with Fleetwood making a crucial contribution.
Fleetwood's Response to the Age Gap
Fleetwood has dismissed the criticism. "I tell my kids all the time the biggest life skill you can have is finding a great woman," he told The Times in 2023. "And I did manage that."
Clare has also addressed the age difference. On a 2023 episode of the Performance People podcast, she said: "We've got a 23-year age difference. Of course I turned him down. I was like, 'Don't be stupid.'"
She added: "The age gap was big news in our circle, so I was a little bit paranoid about what other people were thinking all the time. But once we fell in love, that's it. We were in. People saw us and knew it meant something."
Family Dynamics
Speaking on the Fore Play podcast, Fleetwood described his family: "The whole family - we're unbelievably close. There's Oscar and Mo, and they are the two older ones, and then there's Frankie." He noted that when asked about his children, he often says he has three kids, aged 17, 16, and six, prompting surprised looks before he explains that the older two are stepchildren. "I never really think of them as step-kids," he said. "I've been around them a long time now."
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