Full ASAP transcripts can be found here…
Tournament Preview
Past champion Tommy Fleetwood will be aiming to create more magic on French fairways this week when he tees it up at the FedEx Open de France.
The World Number Eight triumphed at Le Golf National in 2017, a season that saw him top the Race to Dubai Rankings for the first time, and was part of Europe’s Ryder Cup victory over the United States at the same venue the following year. He then added to a remarkable record in the capital when he earned an Olympic silver medal at the 2024 Paris Games.
The 35-year-old, who could be forgiven for having mixed feelings about the event thanks to five missed cuts outside of his win, now returns for his first appearance at Continental Europe’s oldest national open since 2018.
The eight-time DP World Tour winner will be hoping to draw on his fond memories as the tournament returns to Le Golf National following two years of renovations.
Michael Kim will be looking to do similar, as he prepares to defend a title for the first time on golf’s Global Tour.
The American prevailed at Golf de Saint-Nom-La-Bretèche last year, getting up and down from a greenside bunker at the last to win by one stroke over Australia’s Elvis Smylie and home favourite Jeong weon Ko.
It ended a seven-year worldwide wait for victory, marking his maiden DP World Tour title and helping him qualify for the DP World Tour Play-Offs as he reached a career-high 35th in the Official World Golf Ranking after the DP World Tour Championship last November.
The 33-year-old is now preparing for a new challenge on the Albatros course, with its renowned lake-strewn closing stretch firmly on his radar.
Viktor Hovland and Ludvig Åberg are among those also bracing for the test, in what will mark their FedEx Open de France debuts.
The Team Europe duo, who both finished in a tie for 27th at last week’s BMW PGA Championship, are no strangers to the iconic course, having represented their countries at the Olympics in 2024.
They will now tee it up together across the first two rounds, alongside Ryder Cup teammate Matt Fitzpatrick, for the 108th edition of the historic event.
Martin Couvra, leading a strong home contingent, will join 25 other French players in this year’s field. The 2025 Sir Henry Cotton Rookie of the Year will hope to make his dream of victory on home soil a reality in his third FedEx Open de France appearance.
Since it last staged France’s national open, the Albatros course at Le Golf National has undergone a redesign to holes four, five and six, while remodelled greens, bunkers and a new championship tee on the 15th form part of further enhancements.
Player Quotes
Tommy Fleetwood: It is nice to be back. I love coming back and playing on the DP World Tour as it is. But coming to a place and a course that has been kind to me over the years and given me some unbelievable moments, it’s really nice.
Yeah, I started the year really, really well (in 2017). I won in Abu Dhabi that year, but it hadn’t really been a goal of mine to win the Race to Dubai at that point. I just sort of got my game back at the start of the year.
And then I came here. I’ve never made the cut before at this event, and then I ended up winning. And I think that put me at the top of the Race to Dubai, which is where I sort of started to think, oh, maybe I could win one of these.
So it was a big moment for me. It was my first Rolex event that I won. But it was such a big moment for me. It was on a course where I’d struggled before. And then, yeah, so to win an event like that, it was such a big event, put me to the top of the Race to Dubai. Yeah. It was a massive moment in my career for me.
I think it’s great to come back to somewhere where you can draw on great memories. Like, you know, no matter how hard you found a place before or how many tough weeks you might have had, I think just having those good moments and those great shots to fall back on when you have done it, I think is more important than the bad stuff.
So, yeah, looking forward to the tournament itself, and looking forward to the challenges of the golf course.
Michael Kim: I don’t get too many chances to be defending champion. Not many players do except maybe Scottie and Rory. So I’m just very honoured and excited to be back.
I remember standing on 16 tee, thinking that I had a great chance. I knew I had a couple birdie holes coming in. I hit some – I still remember a lot of the swings and how those shots felt leading up.
And I remember standing on 17 fairway, and I knew where everyone stood. I knew if I made birdie, I would have an awesome chance on 18, and just remembering that this is my chance. And I hit an awesome shot there on 17 with a pitching wedge that set up the birdie, and obviously the putt on 18 was very, very cool.
Anytime you feel like you have a chance to win a tournament, like I said, it can be pretty rare, and you remember the moments when you have a chance like that and you step up and you actually do it. That’s a massive confidence boost. And hopefully I have a chance again this year and produce the same or very similar results.
Viktor Hovland: I mean, I’ve already been here in ’24, the Olympics, and I was very impressed by the golf course. I think, yeah, it’s probably one of the best courses I’ve played in Europe, especially in a tournament. I think it’s one of those places where if you play well, tee to green, if you hit the ball well, you can really separate yourself.
It’s very demanding off the tee. I think the rough was maybe a little bit thicker in ’24 for the Olympics than it is now. I understand the summer has been very warm, and it’s hard to maybe grow as thick of a rough.
But there’s a lot of water, especially on the back nine, there’s a lot of just demanding and intimidating shots that I think if you know where the ball is going, you can really separate yourself and, yeah, play well. I think it’s just a very fair golf course.
Ludvig Åberg: I’m looking forward to it. Obviously I’ve heard Alex Noren talk about it, so I know a little bit. So, yeah, obviously, seen the golf course a few times before in tournament play, and really enjoyed it.
I think it’s a golf course that’s meant to host big events. You can see it, the way it’s built and the way the grandstands, the natural grandstands kind of work. So, yeah, I’ve been looking forward to playing.
Martin Couvra: For me, it’s important to be here. It’s, I think, one of my biggest dreams is to win my national open. So really happy to be here. Really happy to play on this golf course because we play a lot of amateur events here with the French team and everything, so good memories over there.
It should be really nice. I mean, there’s some family that’s coming, some friends, and even like all the French spectators is coming here. I think it’s going to be very nice.
Venue: Le Golf National, Saint-Quentin-en-Yvelines, France
2025 Champion: Michael Kim (USA)
Prize Fund: $3,750,000
Race to Dubai: Tournament 36 of 42
Back 9: Tournament 5 of 9
Race to Dubai Points: 5,000
Ryder Cup Points: 1,500